Psychisches Befinden in der Bevölkerung während der COVID-19-Pandemie

Kuehner, Christine; Schultz, Katharina; Gass, Peter; Meyer-Lindenberg, Andreas; Dreßing, Harald

Objective Analysis of associations between perceived daily life strain during the COVID-19-crisis and personality aspects with current psychological wellbeing in the general population and comparison of mental health indicators with those from a previous survey in 2018. Methods Written survey in a random sample from the general population (n = 721) on Corona-related assessments, personality aspects and current mental health (WHO-5, PHQ-D). Results Fear for the health of close persons, strain regarding going out restrictions, increased substance use and psychological risk- and resilience factors were independently related to current mental health. Extent and frequencies of mental health symptomatology did not differ between 2018 and 2020. Conclusion This is a first study in Germany reporting results from a population-based random sample on determinants of mental health during the COVID-19-crisis and a comparison of mental health symptomatology with prepandemic data from the same population.