Analysis of factors affecting fear and mental health awareness of coronavirus disease infection

Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global health challenge that persists in causing both health emergencies and mental health crises around the world. This study aimed to analyze the factors contributing to COVID-19 infection and their impact on mental health crises on Java Island. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between June and July 2020 on Java Island, Indonesia, involving 1,218 respondents selected through convenience sampling. The independent variables included demographic, individual internal, and psychological factors, while the dependent variable was mental health crisis occurrence. Data were collected through demographic information, knowledge and attitude questionnaires, depression anxiety stress scores, the brief-COPE inventory, as well as surveys addressing encountered problems and mental health emergencies. The collected data underwent analysis using chi-square and multivariate logistic regression. Results: Significance was observed in the relationship between demographic, individual internal, and psychological factors, and their impact on mental health crises (p < 0.05). Following adjustment with logistic regression, psychological factors exhibited a more pronounced relationship, with the highest association observed in stress levels (p = 0.000, 95% CI: 1.064-2.131). Conclusions: Individual stress levels emerged as the foremost contributing factor to mental health crises. Psychological elements, encompassing anxiety levels, stress, coping mechanisms, and encountered challenges, played substantial roles in disrupting psychological well-being and mental health.


Introduction
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains an ongoing global health challenge, having escalated into a health emergency across the world (WHO, 2020).Its treatment remains elusive and continues to be a subject of research (Hotez, Corry and Bottazzi, 2020;Huang et al., 2020).Consequently, the incidence of COVID-19 cases continues to surge (Wang et al., 2020;Wu et al., 2020).The rapid transmission of the virus has sparked widespread concern (Huang et al., 2020) as people face increased susceptibility to infection, illness, and even fatality due to this virus (Covaci, 2020).As a result, people start to have a fear of infection (Fofana, 2020) and begin to overprotect themselves to prevent the spread of the virus (Covaci, 2020).Many resort to measures such as frequent hand washing, avoiding social interactions, harboring suspicions about others carrying the virus, and stigmatizing COVID-19 patients and their close contacts (Carroll et al., 2020;Dymecka, Gerymski and Machnik-Czerwik, 2020;Nursalam et al., 2020).The heightened sense of fear and panic during pandemics and epidemics has taken a toll on the mental health of both individuals and communities.
Psychological responses within communities exhibit considerable diversity (Barzilay et al., 2020;Dymecka, Gerymski, & Machnik-Czerwik, 2020).While some individuals harbor fears about COVID-19 and consider it a conspiracy (Georgiou, Delfabbro and Balzan, 2020), such misinformation hampers efforts to control virus transmission (Fofana, 2020), including excessive psychosomatic symptoms and repetitive adherence to health protocols (Barzilay et al., 2020;Carroll et al., 2020;Dymecka, Gerymski and Machnik-Czerwik, 2020).Since March 2020, Indonesia's declaration of a national health emergency has intensified the community's apprehension of COVID-19 (Fofana et al., 2020).The substantial caseload and death toll have bred a negative stigma, leading people to shun those at risk of transmitting the virus, including healthcare workers (Efendi et al., 2023).Even deceased COVID-19 patients face rejection due to persistent community belief in their contagion potential (Hotez, Corry and Bottazzi, 2020).Moreover, misleading information from various media sources fosters negative psychological outcomes such as heightened anxiety, culminating in mental health crises and social stigmatization (Covaci, 2020;Dymecka, Gerymski and Machnik-Czerwik, 2020).Prompt intervention is imperative to address the psychological issues, including mental health crises and stigma, pervasive in Indonesian society, thus preventing more severe repercussions (Nursalam et al., 2020).While physical interventions have been implemented in Indonesia, psychological support has received less attention.Consequently, many individuals grapple with anxiety stemming from misinformation (Dymecka, Gerymski and Machnik-Czerwik, 2020).Given these challenges, a deeper exploration is necessary to ascertain the most suitable psychological interventions to tackle the psychological impacts, mental health crises, and social stigma prevalent within the community.Thus, this study aimed to analyze the contributory factors of COVID-19 in relation to mental health crises on Java Island.

Research design and samples
This cross-sectional study was conducted between June and July 2020 on Java Island, Indonesia.The study aimed to include individuals aged 20 to 54 years residing on Java Island.The research sample comprised 1,218 respondents from five provinces on Java Island: Jakarta, West Java, Yogyakarta, Central Java, and East Java.Respondents were selected using convenience sampling techniques through both online and offline media channels.To assess demographic factors, individual internal factors, psychological factors, and community mental health crises, confidential questionnaires were administered to the participants to ensure data privacy and reliability.

Variable and instruments
The study's independent variables encompassed demographic factors, individual internal factors, and psychological factors.Demographic factors included residence location, ethnicity, marital status, income, religion, and health status.Individual internal factors covered age, gender, education level, knowledge, and attitude.Psychological factors encompassed stress levels, anxiety, coping mechanisms, and encountered challenges.The dependent variable was the occurrence of a mental health crisis.The research instruments included a structured questionnaire comprising demographic information, knowledge, and attitude (adopted from Dauda Goni, 2018), the Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale (Lovibond and Lovibond, 1995), the brief-COPE inventory (Carver, 1997), questions about faced challenges (Gilhooly et al., 2007), and mental health crises (Talevi et al., 2020).Utilizing a Likert rating scale with four items, ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree), the questionnaire encompassed 5-21 questions.Total scores ranged from 0 to 84.The instrument underwent initial validation and reliability testing, yielding Cronbach's α values between 0.875 and 0.995.

Data analysis
SPSS version 22.0 was employed for data analysis, employing inferential statistics such as the chi-square test and logistic regression.Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the demographic characteristics of the respondents.Bivariate analysis, utilizing the chi-square test as a nonparametric approach was employed to examine significant relationships between sample characteristics, individual internal factors, psychological factors, and mental health crises.Significant variables were subjected to multivariate logistic regression analysis to identify the most influential factor among all variables.Relationships were presented through odds ratios (OR) alongside 95% confidence intervals (CI), considering a p-value of 0.05 as statistically significant.

Ethical considerations
This study received ethical approval from the Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Nursing, Universitas Airlangga, Indonesia, with certificate number 2038-KEPK.After receiving explanations and research procedure instructions, all respondents voluntarily provided informed consent to participate in the research.The research procedure adhered to the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for research involving human participants.

Characteristics of respondents and distribution of research variables
The results of the demographic information provided insights into various characteristics of the respondents.A significant portion of the sample, comprising 569 respondents (46.7%), resided in East Java.Furthermore, 895 respondents (73.5%) identified as Javanese, and 1,139 respondents (93.5%) identified as Muslims.Additionally, 813 respondents (66.7%) were unmarried, 376 respondents (30.9%) were students, and 240 respondents (19.7%) were employed as nurses.The majority of respondents (53.5%) reported an income level falling below the regional minimum wage.Concerning health status, 1,122 respondents (92.1%) reported being in good health, while 59 respondents (4.8%) had tested positive for COVID-19 (Table 1).
Table 2 illustrates the variables related to individual internal factors, encompassing age, gender, education level, knowledge, and attitude.It also presents psychological factor variables, including stress levels, anxiety levels, coping mechanisms, and challenges faced by the respondents.The results reveal that the majority of respondents were female (69.0%).Among them, 544 respondents (44.7%) fell within the age range of 17 to 25 years, and 698 respondents (57.3%) held a bachelor's degree.In terms of knowledge, 867 respondents (71.2%) demonstrated good knowledge levels, while regarding attitude 869 respondents (71.3%) displayed positive attitudes.The assessment of stress levels indicated that the majority of respondents experienced normal stress levels, with 143 respondents (11.7%) reporting high stress levels.

Factors influencing relationships with mental health crisis
The analysis of individual internal factors revealed a significant relationship between age, education level, knowledge, and attitude, and the occurrence of mental health crises (p < 0.05).Notably, late teenagers exhibited the highest incidence rate of mental health issues, with 15.4% requiring mental health services, 11.0% seeking counseling, and 1.8% experiencing mental health crises.Furthermore, gender emerged as a factor linked to heightened mental health challenges among women.Additionally, a higher education level was associated with a greater likelihood of mental health problems.Conversely, lower levels of knowledge and less positive attitudes were also found to potentially contribute to mental health issues (Table 3).
Psychological factors were demonstrated to be significant contributors to mental health issues.As indicated in Table 4, individuals exhibiting high levels of stress, elevated anxiety, and limited coping abilities, especially when confronted with substantial challenges, displayed more pronounced mental health crises.Notably, individuals with very severe stress levels (7.7%) and inadequate coping mechanisms (6.3%) reported the highest prevalence of mental health crises.
Multivariate analysis was conducted using logistic regression with a 95% CI.The factor exhibiting the strongest association with mental health crises was stress level (p = 0.000; 95% CI: 1.064-2.131).This outcome highlights that the relationship between stress levels and mental health crises was threefold higher or more significant than other variables (Table 5).

Discussions
Psychological factors, particularly individual stress levels, have been strongly associated with mental health crises (Wu et al., 2020).The findings indicated a prevalence of severe and very severe stress levels due to the COVID-19 pandemic.This aligns with research conducted in the US, Israel, and several other countries, which consistently reported elevated stress levels globally.The identified stressors within the community encompassed fear of infection, COVID-19-related fatalities, communitylevel discomforts such as mask-wearing and social distancing, interpersonal suspicion and distancing, familial exposure to the virus, asymptomatic carriers unknowingly transmitting the virus, and economic hardships resulting in financial strain (Barzilay et al., 2020;Carroll et al., 2020).Incorrect information and misconceptions emerged as a common underlying factor, reflecting a broader trend observed by Georgiou, Delfabbro and Balzan (2020), who highlighted the prevalence of conspiracy theories that discredited COVID-19.This misinformation contributed to a surge in cases, as evidenced by studies such as Qiu et al. (2020).The impact on health workers was also evident, with a significant proportion displaying moderate to severe stress responses in the face of public reluctance to participate in prevention efforts (WHO, 2020).
Demographic factors also played a pivotal role in the onset of mental health crises.The situational context of specific locations influenced individual behavior (Giallonardo et al., 2020).Self-quarantine and social restrictions further amplified fear (Dymecka, Gerymski and Machnik-Czerwik, 2020).Notably, regions with higher COVID-19 caseloads and more rigorous social distancing measures reported a higher prevalence of mental health crises.The pandemic's economic and educational disruptions rendered students and entrepreneurs particularly vulnerable to heightened stress levels and the need for counseling (Bonaccorsi et al., 2020;König, Jäger-Biela and Glutsch, 2020).Comparable trends were noted in China, where students encountered graduation delays and employment challenges due to digital adaptation limitations (Fernandes, 2020;König, Jäger-biela and Glutsch, 2020).Entrepreneurs faced financial crises as their businesses dwindled, except for those offering essential pandemic-related goods (Ashraf, 2020;Bonaccorsi et al., 2020).A decrease in community income due to pandemicrelated unemployment and remote work contributed to employee burnout and subsequent mental health crises (Zar et al., 2020).
Among individual internal factors, age, education level, knowledge, and attitude emerged as influential in the onset of mental health crises (Nursalam et al., 2020).Education played a critical role, with higher education levels often associated with better health literacy, contrasting those subscribing to COVID-19 conspiracy theories (Boulle et al., 2020;Nepomuceno et al., 2020).Education level also plays an important role.People with higher education levels tend to be easier to receive health education than people who considered COVID-19 as a conspiracy theory (Georgiou, Delfabbro and Balzan, 2020;Nepomuceno et al., 2020).Challenges arose for those with limited awareness who hesitated to contribute to transmission prevention efforts (Nursalam et al., 2020).Furthermore, the community exhibited varying knowledge and attitudes, ranging from strict adherence to health protocols to nonchalance, necessitating tailored interventions (Wang, Di et al., 2020;Williamson et al., 2020;C. Wu et al., 2020).
Social psychology emerged as pivotal in managing mental health challenges.The proliferation of misinformation triggered heightened anxiety and fear (Boulle et al., 2020;Dymecka, Gerymski and Machnik-Czerwik, 2020), resulting in stigmatization of COVID-19 patients and their families.This extended to health workers who were often barred from returning home (Bagcchi, 2020;Ramaci, Barattucci and Ledda, 2020).While healthcare professionals demonstrated adaptive coping strategies, the loss of family members due to COVID-19 and strict burial procedures induced significant grief among the broader community (Benussi et al., 2020).Psychosomatic symptoms and health-related anxieties further exacerbated the situation.These psychological concerns are central to understanding mental health crises, warranting prompt attention and resolution.
This study does possess limitations, chiefly in relation to external or environmental factors that could precipitate mental health crises.The use of convenience sampling may have compromised the representativeness of the national sample.Moreover, the study was conducted during the peak crisis period of the COVID-19 pandemic, before transitioning into a more normalized phase in the later months of the year.Consequently, psychological and mental health issues may have evolved as the pandemic persisted.
Nevertheless, the study's strength lies in its robust methodology and the use of valid and reliable instruments in accordance with established standards.The study's findings can serve as a valuable supplementary resource concerning factors contributing significantly to mental health crises.

Conclusions
Individual stress levels were identified as the most influential factor contributing to mental health crises.Among the primary contributors disturbing psychological well-being and mental health are psychological factors, encompassing levels of anxiety, stress, coping mechanisms, and challenges faced.These elements played pivotal roles in disrupting psychological equilibrium and mental well-being.Consequently, psychological interventions are imperative for effectively addressing these concerns.

Table 3 .
The relationship between individual internal factors and mental health crisis

Table 5 .
Multivariate analysis of the contributing factors to a mental health crisis