The Psychological Impact of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic in the Iranian Population: A Cross-sectional Study

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak was first detected in China in 2019 and it has become a global threat affecting many countries. This study aimed to investigate the psychological impacts of COVID-19 pandemic, including anxiety, depression, and stress in the Iranian population.

In this cross-sectional study, an online survey was designed using the simple random sampling technique. A total of 1091 online surveys were completed during 10-18 May, 2020. The collected data included demographics, physical symptoms, history of COVID-19, information and attitudes toward COVID-19, as well as precautions and protection measures against the disease. Psychological impacts were evaluated using the Impact of Event Scale–Revised (IES-R), and mental health status by the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Linear regression was used to analyze the associations.

According to the results, 47.7% of the respondents demonstrated moderate to severe psychological impacts caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, of whom 28.3%, 24%, and 22.3% suffered from moderate to severe depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms, respectively. Also, female gender, decrease or cessation of income, and having chronic diseases were associated with more psychological impacts and higher scores of DASS-21 subscales.

Approximately, a quarter of the participants reported moderate to high levels of stress, anxiety, and depression, and half of the participants indicated moderate to severe psychological impacts. In this study, we successfully identified the vulnerable individuals to determine appropriate interventions and control the psychological consequences.