PolyU research reveals that over 10% Hong Kong people exhibit PTSD symptoms one year after the onset of the pandemic; Severity of symptoms is associated with time spent watching pandemic-related news
- Written by PolyU
Researchers from the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences: Prof. David SHUM, Yeung Tsang Wing Yee and Tsang Wing Hing Professor in Neuropsychology, Chair Professor of Neuropsychology and Dean of Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (middle), Dr. Judy Yuen-man SIU, Associate Professor of the Department of Applied Social Sciences (left) and Dr. Sally Yuan CAO, Research Assistant Professor of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences (right).
With support from the Health and Medical Research Fund of the Food and Health Bureau, a research team from the Faculty of Health and Social Sciences of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) started a mixed-method study in 2020. The objective of the study was to explore the level of adult psychological trauma one year after the onset of the pandemic through a telephone survey and in-depth individual interviews, so as to identify the impact of the pandemic on Hong Kong people’s mental health. Additionally, the study aimed to discover the demographics in relation to compliance with preventative measures, and to discover the determinants of motivation for vaccination for the disadvantaged, especially the elderly. The study results were published in the academic journals BMC Psychiatry[2]and BMC Geriatrics[3] respectively in April 2022.This study comprised two components. The first component, a large-scale telephone survey study involving over 3,000 Hong Kong residents, was completed between December 2020 and February 2021, i.e., during the fourth wave of the pandemic and about one year after its onset. Among the respondents, 69% were aged between 18 and 59, and most of them were working adults. The survey found that:
- More than one in ten (12.4%) of the respondents had exhibited post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, indicating that they might have PTSD
- Being unemployed or having no personal income, and with lower educational attainment were associated with a higher chance having of PTSD symptoms
References
- ^ Media OutReach (www.media-outreach.com)
- ^ BMC Psychiatry (bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com)
- ^ BMC Geriatrics (bmcgeriatr.biomedcentral.com)
Authors: PolyU
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