Selected Determinants of Young Adults’ Life Satisfaction in Poland During a Pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: The time of pandemic poses a considerable challenge for the people of the whole world. They are afflicted with physical and mental ailments affecting life satisfaction, which iscontingent upon multiple factors. Research Aim: The objective of authors’ own research was to adapt the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) and, subsequently, to identify the selected determinants of life satisfaction – the state anxiety and the fear of COVID-19 – of the young Poles in the time of pandemic. Method: During the lockdown in Poland (May and June), 236 individuals aged 19–35 were subjected to research. To this end, an online survey consisting of the three research tools of high psychometric properties was applied: the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S), the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Results: The reliability and validity of the FCV-19S has been analysed in addition to the analysis of the correlations, variances and regression of the selected variables. Conclusions: The obtained data prove that during the pandemic the young Poles feel greater life satisfaction both the higher the intensity of the fear of COVID-19 is and the lower the state anxiety is. It is highly likely that they appreciate different values from the ones preferred prior to the pandemic. With account taken of the period of the conducted studies, it may be assumed that the relationship with close relatives, with whom the young Poles were spending their time, or from whom they were forcibly isolated, was of no significance.

Keywords

• life satisfaction, fear, pandemic