Prevalence and correlates of PTSD and depressive symptoms one month after the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic in a sample of home-quarantined Chinese university students
Open accessAbstract
Background When COVID-19 emerged in China in late 2019, most citizens were home-quarantined to prevent the spread of the virus. This study explored the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression in a sample of home-quarantined college students to identify the psychological distress risk factors.Method The PTSD and depressive symptoms in the 2485 participants from 6 universities were investigated using online survey versions of the PTSD Checklist Civilian Version and the 9-question Patient Health Questionnaires (PHQ-9), and data on sleep durations, exposure, home-quarantine time and socio-demographic variables were also collected.Results The PTSD and depression prevalence were found to be 2.7% and 9.0%. Subjectively, feeling extreme fear was the most significant risk factor for psychological distress, followed by short sleep durations, being in their graduating year (4 th year) and living in severely afflicted areas. Sleep durations was a mediator between exposures and mental health problems.Conclusions The results suggested that the psychological consequences of the COVID-19 could be serious. Psychological interventions that reduce fear and improve sleep durations need to be made available to the home-quarantined university students, and graduating students and those in the worst-hit areas should be given priority focus.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Results of this study are largely consistent with prior studies in China and elsewhere highlighting adverse psychological consequences in the general population of both quarantine and disease outbreak.
“Results of this large-scale, cross-sectional study are largely consistent with prior studies in China and elsewhere highlighting the adverse psychological consequences in the general population of both quarantine and disease outbreak [10, 14, 57].”
From Psychiatric symptoms, risk, and protective factors among university students in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic in China (2021) · cites this paper as [57]
The prevalence of anxiety, depression, and traumatic stress among university students in this study is similar yet slightly higher than findings reported in two other recent studies concerning the initial phase of the outbreak.
“The prevalence on anxiety, depression, and traumatic stress among university students uncovered from this study is similar yet slightly higher than findings reported in two other recent studies concerning the initial phase of the outbreak [14, 57].”
From Psychiatric symptoms, risk, and protective factors among university students in quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic in China (2021) · cites this paper as [57]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
The PHQ-9: Validity of a brief depression severity measure
Kroenke, K., Spitzer, R. L., & Williams, J. B. W. (2001) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1046/j.1525-1497.2001.016009606.x · Cited by 44,910 · see citing works
Pathological findings of COVID-19 associated with acute respiratory distress syndrome
Xu, Z., Shi, L., Wang, Y., Zhang, J., Huang, L., Zhang, C., Liu, S., Zhao, P., Liu, H., Zhu, L., et al. (2020) · The Lancet Respiratory Medicine · doi:10.1016/s2213-2600(20)30076-x · Cited by 8,545 · see citing works
Loneliness: the experience of emotional and social isolation
Weiss, R. S. (1974) · Cited by 2,513 · see citing works
Online mental health services in China during the COVID-19 outbreak
Liu, S., Yang, L., Zhang, C., Xiang, Y.-T., Liu, Z., Hu, S., & Zhang, B. (2020) · The Lancet Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s2215-0366(20)30077-8 · Cited by 1,992 · see citing works
Manea, L., Gilbody, S., & McMillan, D. (2012) · Canadian Medical Association Journal · doi:10.1503/cmaj.110829 · Cited by 1,966 · see citing works
SARS control and psychological effects of quarantine, Toronto, Canada
Hawryluck, L., Gold, W. L., Robinson, S., Pogorski, S., Galea, S., & Styra, R. (2004) · Emerging Infectious Diseases · doi:10.3201/eid1007.030703 · Cited by 1,929 · see citing works
Psychological interventions for people affected by the COVID-19 epidemic
Duan, L., & Zhu, G. (2020) · The Lancet Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s2215-0366(20)30073-0 · Cited by 1,885 · see citing works
Wang, W., Bian, Q., Zhao, Y., Li, X., Wang, W., Du, J., Zhang, G., Zhou, Q., & Zhao, M. (2014) · General Hospital Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2014.05.021 · Cited by 1,480 · see citing works
Understanding, compliance and psychological impact of the SARS quarantine experience
REYNOLDS, D. L., GARAY, J. R., DEAMOND, S. L., MORAN, M. K., GOLD, W., & STYRA, R. (2008) · Epidemiology and Infection · doi:10.1017/s0950268807009156 · Cited by 895 · see citing works
Weathers, F. W., Ruscio, A. M., & Keane, T. M. (1999) · Psychological Assessment · doi:10.1037/1040-3590.11.2.124 · Cited by 707 · see citing works
Zhang, J., Wu, W., Zhao, X., & Zhang, W. (2020) · Precision Clinical Medicine · doi:10.1093/pcmedi/pbaa006 · Cited by 554 · see citing works
Zhang, Y., Liang, W., Zuo-ming, C., Zhang, H., Zhang, J.-H., Weng, X., Yang, S.-C., Zhang, L., Shen, L.-J., & Zhang, Y. (2013) · Asia-Pacific Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/appy.12103 · Cited by 444 · see citing works
Impaired fear inhibition is a biomarker of PTSD but not depression
Jovanovic, T., Norrholm, S. D., Blanding, N. Q., Davis, M., Duncan, E., Bradley, B., & Ressler, K. J. (2010) · Depression and Anxiety · doi:10.1002/da.20663 · Cited by 444 · see citing works
Ge, L., Yap, C. W., Ong, R., & Heng, B. H. (2017) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0182145 · Cited by 432 · see citing works
Stress-induced enhancement of fear learning: An animal model of posttraumatic stress disorder
Rau, V., DeCola, J. P., & Fanselow, M. S. (2005) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2005.04.010 · Cited by 428 · see citing works
Norrholm, S. D., Jovanovic, T., Olin, I. W., Sands, L. A., Karapanou, I., Bradley, B., & Ressler, K. J. (2011) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2010.09.013 · Cited by 397 · see citing works
Roussos, A., Goenjian, A. K., Steinberg, A. M., Sotiropoulou, C., Kakaki, M., Kabakos, C., Karagianni, S., & Manouras, V. (2005) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.162.3.530 · Cited by 382 · see citing works
Leppin, A., & Aro, A. R. (2009) · International Journal of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1007/s12529-008-9002-8 · Cited by 366 · see citing works
Main, A., Zhou, Q., Ma, Y., Luecken, L. J., & Liu, X. (2011) · Journal of Counseling Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0023632 · Cited by 361 · see citing works
Predictive factors of psychological disorder development during recovery following SARS outbreak
Mihashi, M., Otsubo, Y., Yinjuan, X., Nagatomi, K., Hoshiko, M., & Ishitake, T. (2009) · Health Psychology · doi:10.1037/a0013674 · Cited by 290 · see citing works
Dobie, D. J., Kivlahan, D. R., Maynard, C. C., Bush, K. R., McFall, M., Epler, A. J., & Bradley, K. A. (2002) · General Hospital Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s0163-8343(02)00207-4 · Cited by 235 · see citing works
Qian, M., Wu, Q., Wu, P., Hou, Z., Liang, Y., Cowling, B. J., & Yu, H. (2020) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-040910 · Cited by 225 · see citing works
Chen, R., Chou, K.-R., Huang, Y.-J., Wang, T.-S., Liu, S.-Y., & Ho, L.-Y. (2006) · International Journal of Nursing Studies · doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2005.03.006 · Cited by 202 · see citing works
Sun, Y., Shi, L., Bao, Y., Sun, Y., Shi, J., & Lü, L. (2018) · Sleep Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2018.03.011 · Cited by 198 · see citing works
Fan, F., Zhou, Y., & Liu, X. (2017) · The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry · doi:10.4088/jcp.15m10206 · Cited by 119 · see citing works
Johal, S. (2009) · PubMed · Cited by 110 · see citing works
School Bullying and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms: The Role of Parental Bonding
Plexousakis, S., Κουρκούτας, Η., Giovazolias, T., Chatira, K., & Nikolopoulos, D. S. (2019) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2019.00075 · Cited by 96 · see citing works
The psychometric utility of two self-report measures of PTSD among women substance users
Harrington, T., & Newman, E. (2007) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.04.016 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Swinkels, C. M., Ulmer, C. S., Beckham, J. C., Buse, N. A., the VA Mid-Atlantic MIRECC Registry Workgroup, & Calhoun, P. S. (2013) · SLEEP · doi:10.5665/sleep.2800 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
Yu, Y., Yang, X., Yang, Y., Chen, L., Qiu, X., Qiao, Z., Zhou, J., Pan, H., Ban, B., Zhu, X., et al. (2015) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0143612 · Cited by 87 · see citing works
Jin, Y., Xu, J., Hai, L., & Liu, D. (2013) · Archives of Psychiatric Nursing · doi:10.1016/j.apnu.2013.10.010 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
Self-citationLara, D. R., & Akiskal, H. H. (2006) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2006.03.021 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
Kopala‐Sibley, D. C., Danzig, A. P., Kotov, R., Bromet, E. J., Carlson, G. A., Olino, T. M., Bhatia, V., Black, S. R., & Klein, D. N. (2016) · Journal of Abnormal Psychology · doi:10.1037/abn0000152 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Tang, W., Zhao, J., Lü, Y., Zha, Y., Liu, H., Sun, Y., Zhang, J., Yang, Y., & Xu, J. (2018) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2018.02.081 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Self-citationLivanou, M., Kasvikis, Y., Başoğlu, M., Mytskidou, P., Sotiropoulou, V., Spanea, E., Mitsopoulou, T., & Voutsa, N. (2004) · European Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.eurpsy.2004.06.025 · Cited by 69 · see citing works
Impact of a spreading epidemic on medical students.
Loh, L., ALI, A. M., Ang, T.-H., & Chelliah, A. (2005) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 56 · see citing works
Spread of SARS and War-Related Rumors through New Media in China
Ma, R. (2008) · Communication Quarterly · doi:10.1080/01463370802448204 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Zheng, G., Jimba, M., & Wakai, S. (2005) · Asia Pacific Journal of Public Health · doi:10.1177/101053950501700211 · Cited by 41 · see citing works
Schwartz, R. M., Rasul, R., Gargano, L. M., Lieberman‐Cribbin, W., Brackbill, R. M., & Taioli, E. (2019) · Journal of Traumatic Stress · doi:10.1002/jts.22445 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
How mental health care should change as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic
Moreno, C., Wykes, T., Galderisi, S., Nordentoft, M., Crossley, N., Jones, N., Cannon, M., Correll, C. U., Byrne, L., Carr, S., et al. (2020) · The Lancet Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s2215-0366(20)30307-2 · Cited by 1,840 · see citing works
Luo, M., Guo, L., Yu, M., Jiang, W., & Wang, H. (2020) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113190 · Cited by 1,615 · see citing works
Wu, T., Jia, X., Shi, H., Niu, J., Yin, X., Xie, J., & Wang, X. (2021) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.11.117 · Cited by 1,138 · see citing works
Sleep problems during the COVID-19 pandemic by population: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Jahrami, H., BaHammam, A. S., Bragazzi, N. L., Saif, Z., Faris, M., & Vitiello, M. V. (2021) · Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine · doi:10.5664/jcsm.8930 · Cited by 751 · see citing works
Cauberghe, V., Van Wesenbeeck, I., De Jans, S., Hudders, L., & Ponnet, K. (2021) · Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking · doi:10.1089/cyber.2020.0478 · Cited by 564 · see citing works
Ma, Z., Zhao, J., Li, Y., Chen, D., Wang, T., Zhang, Z., Chen, Z., Yu, Q., Jiang, J., Fan, F., et al. (2020) · Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences · doi:10.1017/s2045796020000931 · Cited by 437 · see citing works
Wang, Z.-H., Yang, H.-L., Yang, Y.-Q., Liu, D., Li, Z.-H., Zhang, X.-R., Zhang, Y.-J., Shen, D., Chen, P.-L., Song, W.-Q., et al. (2020) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.06.034 · Cited by 377 · see citing works
Cooke, J. E., Eirich, R., Racine, N., & Madigan, S. (2020) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113347 · Cited by 360 · see citing works
Li, Y., Zhao, J., Ma, Z., McReynolds, L. S., Lin, D., Chen, Z., Wang, T., Wang, D., Zhang, Y., Zhang, J., et al. (2021) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.11.109 · Cited by 344 · see citing works
Chang, J.-J., Ji, Y., Li, Y.-H., Pan, H.-F., & Su, P.-Y. (2021) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2021.05.109 · Cited by 275 · see citing works
Sun, S., Goldberg, S. B., Lin, D., Qiao, S., & Operario, D. (2021) · Globalization and Health · doi:10.1186/s12992-021-00663-x · Cited by 221 · see citing works
Sun, S., Lin, D., Goldberg, S., Shen, Z., Chen, P., Qiao, S., Brewer, J., Loucks, E., & Operario, D. (2022) · Journal of Counseling Psychology · doi:10.1037/cou0000568 · Cited by 138 · see citing works
Associations between periods of COVID-19 quarantine and mental health in Canada
Daly, Z., Slemon, A., Richardson, C. G., Salway, T., McAuliffe, C., Gadermann, A. M., Thomson, K. C., Hirani, S., & Jenkins, E. K. (2021) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113631 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
Nomura, K., Minamizono, S., Maeda, E., Kim, R., Iwata, T., Hirayama, J., Ono, K., Fushimi, M., Goto, T., Mishima, K., et al. (2021) · Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine · doi:10.1186/s12199-021-00953-1 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
El-Monshed, A. H., El-Adl, A. A., Ali, A. S., & Loutfy, A. (2022) · Journal of American College Health · doi:10.1080/07448481.2021.1891086 · Cited by 84 · see citing works
Shek, D. T. L., Zhao, L., Dou, D., Zhu, X., & Xiao, C. (2021) · Journal of Adolescent Health · doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.01.011 · Cited by 80 · see citing works
Mental health of nursing students amid coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
Gao, J., Wang, F., Guo, S., & Hu, F. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.699558 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Buselli, R., Baldanzi, S., Corsi, M., Chiumiento, M., Del Lupo, E., Carmassi, C., Dell’Osso, L., & Cristaudo, A. (2020) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su12125039 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Freyhofer, S., Ziegler, N., de Jong, E. M., & Schippers, M. C. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.682684 · Cited by 52 · see citing works
Stress Perceived by University Health Sciences Students, 1 Year after COVID-19 Pandemic
Marcén-Román, Y., Gasch-Gallen, A., Vela Martín de la Mota, I. I., Calatayud, E., Gómez-Soria, I., & Rodríguez-Roca, B. (2021) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph18105233 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Somma, A., Krueger, R. F., Markon, K. E., Gialdi, G., Colanino, M., Ferlito, D., Liotta, C., Frau, C., & Fossati, A. (2021) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.12.165 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
Unified protocol vs trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy among adolescents with PTSD
Mohajerin, B., Lynn, S. J., & Cassiello-Robbins, C. (2023) · Behavior Therapy · doi:10.1016/j.beth.2023.03.003 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Ojewale, L. Y. (2020) · doi:10.1101/2020.07.09.20149997 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Palmer, C. A., Oosterhoff, B., Massey, A., & Bawden, H. (2022) · Journal of Adolescent Health · doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2022.01.127 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Karampas, K., Pezirkianidis, C., & Stalikas, A. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1036564 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Wu, M., Lin, L., Wu, Y., Zheng, Y., & Chen, H. (2022) · Translational Pediatrics · doi:10.21037/tp-22-289 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Kang, H., Na, P. J., Fischer, I. C., Tsai, J., Tedeschi, R. G., & Pietrzak, R. H. (2023) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2023.115370 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Negri, O., Horesh, D., Gordon, I., & Hasson-Ohayon, I. (2022) · Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease · doi:10.1097/nmd.0000000000001518 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
- Authors
- Tang, W., Hu, T., Hu, B., Jin, C., Wang, G., Xie, C., Chen, S., & Xu, J.
- Affiliations
- Sichuan University (CN)
- Chengdu Normal University (CN)
- Chengdu University (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Chen, Sen
- Xu, Jiuping
- Venue
- Journal of Affective Disorders
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2020-09
- Volume
- 274
- Pages
- 1-7
- ISSN
- 0165-0327 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7217769
- OpenAlex
- W3025712168
- Cited by
- 787
- References
- 39
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 35 · 2024: 64 · 2023: 133 · 2022: 202 · 2021: 261 · 2020: 86 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 67.95
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Affective Disorders (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Chengdu Medical College
- Chengdu Normal University
- Chongqing Technology and Business University
- Sichuan University (2014SCU11066)
- Chongqing Jiaotong University
- Chengdu University
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
- Keywords
- COVID-19 pandemic, post-traumatic stress disorder, depressive symptoms, home quarantine, university students, psychological distress, sleep duration, fear, graduating students, risk factors, mediation
- MeSH terms
- Betacoronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Adolescent, Adult, Attitude to Health, China, Depressive Disorder, Disease Outbreaks, Female, Humans, Male, Pneumonia, Viral, Quarantine, Surveys and Questionnaires, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Students, Universities, Comorbidity, Causality, Prevalence, Coronavirus Infections, Young Adult, Pandemics
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
