The Mental Health Of Turkish Society During The COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-1 quickly spread all over the world and caused many deaths in Turkey as in the whole world. COVID-19 is potentially lethal and affects the mental health of people. It is important to detect the potential psychological changes in a timely manner during the pandemic. We aimed to determine the anxiety levels and associated risk factors of the society during COVID-19 in Turkey. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted throughout Turkey during the pandemic. The questionnaires were delivered to the participants via Google Forms. The questionnaire was first published on April 15, 2020, and data were collected for a period of 30 days. Results: 8,917 questionnaire forms filled out by Turkish society were included in the study. The anxiety level and fear of death were higher in older, females, parents, smokers, people who have comorbidities, social media users, and people who have higher education levels. Conclusion: The present study is the most comprehensive study conducted in Turkey in terms of the number of participants and sheds light on the mental state of Turkish society during the pandemic. It was determined that COVID-19 has negatively affected the mental health of the population and has increased the anxiety levels and fear of death in Turkey. People who have higher anxiety levels and fear of death should be identified, and psychological support should be provided to these people.

Keywords

• covid-19
• mental health
• turkish society
• state-trait anxiety inventory
• thorson–powell’s revised death anxiety scale
• covid-19
• akıl sağlığı
• türk toplumu
• durumluk-sürekli kaygı envanteri
• thorson-powell