A Cross-Country Examination on the Fear of COVID-19 and the Sense of Loneliness during the First Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak

Lo Coco, Gianluca; Gentile, Ambra; Bosnar, Ksenija; Milovanović, Ivana; Bianco, Antonino; Drid, Patrik; Pišot, Saša

doi:10.3390/ijerph18052586

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A Cross-Country Examination on the Fear of COVID-19 and the Sense of Loneliness during the First Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak

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Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Edificio 15, 90128 Palermo, Italy

Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia

Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, University of Novi Sad, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia

⁴

Institute for Kinesiology Research, Science and Research Center Koper, 6000 Koper, Slovenia

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Academic Editor: Paul B. Tchounwou

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(5), 2586; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18052586

Received: 11 February 2021 / Revised: 26 February 2021 / Accepted: 1 March 2021 / Published: 5 March 2021

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Promotion in Relation to Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity in the Era of Sars-Cov2 Pandemic)

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Abstract

The aim of the current study is to examine gender, age. and cross-country differences in fear of COVID-19 and sense of loneliness during the lockdown, by comparing people from those countries with a high rate of infections and deaths (e.g., Spain and Italy) and from countries with a mild spread of infection (e.g., Croatia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina). A total of 3876 participants (63% female) completed an online survey on “Everyday life practices in COVID-19 time” in April 2020, including measures of fear of COVID-19 and loneliness. Males and females of all age groups in countries suffering from the powerful impact of the COVID-19 pandemic reported greater fear of COVID-19 and sense of loneliness. In less endangered countries, females and the elderly reported more symptoms than males and the young; in Spanish and Italian samples, the pattern of differences is considerably more complex. Future research should thoroughly examine different age and gender groups. The analysis of emotional well-being in groups at risk of mental health issues may help to lessen the long term social and economic costs due to the COVID-19 outbreak. View Full-Text

Keywords: COVID-19; fear of COVID-19; loneliness; cross-country; psychosocial distress

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Lo Coco, G.; Gentile, A.; Bosnar, K.; Milovanović, I.; Bianco, A.; Drid, P.; Pišot, S. A Cross-Country Examination on the Fear of COVID-19 and the Sense of Loneliness during the First Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 2586. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18052586

AMA Style

Lo Coco G, Gentile A, Bosnar K, Milovanović I, Bianco A, Drid P, Pišot S. A Cross-Country Examination on the Fear of COVID-19 and the Sense of Loneliness during the First Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(5):2586. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18052586

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lo Coco, Gianluca, Ambra Gentile, Ksenija Bosnar, Ivana Milovanović, Antonino Bianco, Patrik Drid, and Saša Pišot. 2021. "A Cross-Country Examination on the Fear of COVID-19 and the Sense of Loneliness during the First Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 5: 2586. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18052586

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A Cross-Country Examination on the Fear of COVID-19 and the Sense of Loneliness during the First Wave of COVID-19 Outbreak

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