(PS1-A13) Predictors of Covid-related Stress: The Role of Resilience and Prior Adverse Experiences

Background: Emerging research is beginning to assess factors that influence psychological maladjustment to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. With consideration of the pandemic as a collective traumatic experience, a history of prior adverse experiences and resilience are idiographic factors of particular interest in investigation of COVID-related stress. Preliminary research of the relationship between prior adverse experiences and psychological outcomes in adults during the pandemic is mixed (Doom et al., 2021; Rutherford et al., 2021), and few studies include protective factors such as resilience in direct examination of stress induced by the pandemic. The current study investigates how the interaction between resilience and prior adverse experiences relates to COVID-related stress in young adults.

Method: The current study examined the contributions of prior adverse experiences and resilience to COVID-related stress among young adults (N = 108, 59.68% female) ages 18-29 (M = 19.48 years). The Adverse Child Experiences (ACE) questionnaire and the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CDRS) assessed prior history of adverse experiences and resilience, respectively. The COVID Stress Scale (CSS) measured stress related to characteristics of the coronavirus pandemic. A hierarchical regression analyzed whether prior adverse experiences and resilience significantly predicted COVID-related stress, while controlling for age.

Results: The regression model was significant (F[3, 104] = 3.744, p = .013, explaining 9.6% of the variance in COVID-related stress. ACE score (β = -.25, t = -2.57, p = .011) was a significant predictor within the model, whereas resilience (β = -.13, t = -1.38, p = .171) was not. Adverse childhood experiences exhibited an inverse relationship with COVID-related stress. That is, as ACE score increased, COVID stress decreased.

Discussion: Prior exposure to adverse experiences during childhood appears to afford some protection against COVID-related stress in young adults, even while accounting for resilience. Notably, young adults with minimal prior exposure to adversity may be particularly susceptible to stressors of the pandemic. Secondary analyses will explore nuances of the observed linear relationship at low and high levels of prior adverse experiences, as well as gender as a potential moderator.