The psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adults and children in the United Arab Emirates: a nationwide cross-sectional study

  1. Basema Saddik
  2. Amal Hussein
  3. Ammar Albanna
  4. Iffat Elbarazi
  5. Arwa Al-Shujairi
  6. Mohamad-Hani Temsah
  7. Fatemeh Saheb Sharif-Askari
  8. Emmanuel Stip
  9. Qutayba Hamid
  10. Rabih Halwani

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Abstract

Background

The psychosocial impact of previous infectious disease outbreaks in adults has been well documented, however, there is limited information on the mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adults and children in the United Arab Emirate (UAE) community. The aim of this study was to explore anxiety levels among adults and children in the UAE and to identify potential risk and protective factors for well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

Using a web-based cross-sectional survey we collected data from 2200 self-selected, assessed volunteers and their children. Demographic information, knowledge and beliefs about COVID-19, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) using the (GAD-7) scale, emotional problems in children using the strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ), worry and fear about COVID-19, coping mechanisms and general health information were collected. Descriptive analysis was carried out to summarize demographic and participant characteristics, Chi-square analysis to explore associations between categorical variables and anxiety levels and multivariable binary logistic regression analysis to determine predictors of anxiety levels in adults and emotional problems in children.

Results

The overall prevalence of GAD in the general population was 71% with younger people (59.8%) and females (51.7%) reporting highest levels of anxiety. Parents who were teachers reported the highest percentage of emotional problems in children (26.7%). Adjusted multivariable logistic regression for GAD-7 scores showed that being female, high levels of worry associated with COVID-19, intention to take the COVID-19 vaccine and smoking were associated with higher levels of anxiety. Adjusted multivariable logistic regression for SDQ showed that higher emotional problems were reported for children in lower and higher secondary education, and parents who had severe anxiety were seven times more likely to report emotional problems in their children.

Conclusions

This study reports the psychological impact of COVID-19 among adults and children in the UAE and highlights the significant association between parental and child anxiety. Findings suggest the urgency for policy makers to develop effective screening and coping strategies for parents and especially children.

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  1. Version published to 10.1186/s12888-021-03213-2
  2. ScreenIT

    SciScore for 10.1101/2020.06.11.20128371: (What is this?)

    Please note, not all rigor criteria are appropriate for all manuscripts.

    Table 1: Rigor

    Institutional Review Board StatementIRB: 2.2 Ethical approval and consent: The study was approved by the University of Sharjah Ethics Committee (approval number REC-20-03-12-01) and the United Arab Emirates University research ethics review board (ERS_2020_6098).
    RandomizationInitially, we randomly selected and contacted 17 schools across the UAE, inviting them to participate in the study.
    Blindingnot detected.
    Power Analysisnot detected.
    Sex as a biological variablenot detected.

    Table 2: Resources

    Software and Algorithms
    SentencesResources
    Data were analyzed using the statistical software SAS® 9.3 [32].
    SAS®
    suggested: (SASqPCR, RRID:SCR_003056)

    Results from OddPub: We did not detect open data. We also did not detect open code. Researchers are encouraged to share open data when possible (see Nature blog).

    Results from LimitationRecognizer: We detected the following sentences addressing limitations in the study:
    Limitations: Despite the findings of this study, we acknowledge that it has several limitations. Firstly, the use of convenience sampling and its descriptive nature through an online survey may not allow the generalization of results. However, considering the need for a rapid method to assess the psychological impact on a population during a rapidly evolving infectious disease outbreak, the use of an online survey serves as a promising method for quick results [48]. Additionally, responses were collected from all over the UAE in addition to countries outside the UAE with good response rate allowing for a certain element of representation. Secondly, the nature of self-reported data in the survey may lead to response biases specifically for reported behavioral changes, coping strategies and measures taken where participants may provide socially desirable results. Furthermore, self-reported levels of anxiety and worry among adults and the perceived reports of emotional disorders for children, may not be as accurate as being assessed and evaluated by specialized health professionals. However, even with these limitations, this study provides important baseline information which will inform further research and public health interventions in this area.

    Results from TrialIdentifier: No clinical trial numbers were referenced.

    Results from Barzooka: We did not find any issues relating to the usage of bar graphs.

    Results from JetFighter: We did not find any issues relating to colormaps.

    Results from rtransparent:
    • Thank you for including a conflict of interest statement. Authors are encouraged to include this statement when submitting to a journal.
    • Thank you for including a funding statement. Authors are encouraged to include this statement when submitting to a journal.
    • No protocol registration statement was detected.

    About SciScore

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  3. Version published to 10.1101/2020.06.11.20128371v1 on medRxiv