Quality of Life, Resilience, and Related Factors of Nursing Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective Disease containment of COVID-19 has necessitated widespread social isolation. We aimed to establish what is known about how loneliness and disease containment measures impact on the mental health in children and adolescents. Method For this rapid review, we searched MEDLINE, PSYCHINFO, and Web of Science for articles published between 01/01/1946 and 03/29/2020. 20% of articles were double screened using pre-defined criteria and 20% of data was double extracted for quality assurance. Results 83 articles (80 studies) met inclusion criteria. Of these, 63 studies reported on the impact of social isolation and loneliness on the mental health of previously healthy children and adolescents (n=51,576; mean age 15.3) 61 studies were observational; 18 were longitudinal and 43 cross sectional studies assessing self-reported loneliness in healthy children and adolescents. One of these studies was a retrospective investigation after a pandemic. Two studies evaluated interventions. Studies had a high risk of bias although longitudinal studies were of better methodological quality. Social isolation and loneliness increased the risk of depression, and possibly anxiety at the time loneliness was measured and between 0.25 to 9 years later. Duration of loneliness was more strongly correlated with mental health symptoms than intensity of loneliness. Conclusion Children and adolescents are probably more likely to experience high rates of depression and probably anxiety during and after enforced isolation ends. This may increase as enforced isolation continues. Clinical services should offer preventative support and early intervention where possible and be prepared for an increase in mental health problems.

Resilience refers to an individual's ability to thrive despite adversity. The current study examined the psychometric properties of the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC). Three undergraduate samples (ns < 500) were used to determine the factor structure of the CD-RISC. The first two samples were used to conduct exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and the third was used for confirmatory factor analysis. The EFA showed that the CD-RISC had an unstable factor structure across two demographically equivalent samples. A series of empirically driven modifications was made, resulting in a 10-item unidimensional scale that demonstrated good internal consistency and construct validity. Overall, the 10-item CD-RISC displays excellent psychometric properties and allows for efficient measurement of resilience.