Men’s psychological well-being during COVID-19: the moderator role of posttraumatic growth

Martim Santos, Ana Mónica Machado, Ana Cristina Bernardo, Ângela Leite, M. Graça Pereira*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background and objective: Men are significantly affected by COVID-19 stressors that impact psychological well-being. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between distress, risk perception, emotional representations, preventive COVID-19 infection behaviors, COVID-19 traumatic stress, posttraumatic growth, and psychological well-being, taking also into consideration sociodemographic variables as well as the moderator role of posttraumatic growth in the relationship between traumatic stress and psychological well-being. Material and methods: A cross-sectional design was used. Data were collected during the lockdown, in Portugal, from January to March 2021. The sample included 220 men who answered the questionnaires online. Results: Anxiety and depression symptoms (distress), traumatic stress, and emotional representations were negatively associated with psychological well-being. Older men, professionally active men, and men not in teleworking reported greater psychological well-being. The findings also showed that less emotional representations, less traumatic stress, and lower levels of distress contributed to greater psychological well-being. Finally, posttraumatic growth played a moderating role in the relationship between traumatic stress and psychological well-being. Conclusion: Interventions and further studies must consider the buffering role of posttraumatic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic and focus on helping men handle the associated traumatic stress in order to promote psychological well-being.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)62-71
Number of pages10
JournalJournal of Men's Health
Volume17
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • Distress
  • Emotional representations
  • Men
  • Posttraumatic growth
  • Preventive infection behaviors
  • Psychological well-being
  • Risk perception
  • Traumatic stress

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