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Suicide and Self-Injury

Daily Changes in Sleep, Affect, and Interpersonal Needs among Young Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Moderating Role of Fear of COVID-19 and Social Support

(PS2-B33) Daily Changes in Sleep, Affect, and Interpersonal Needs Among Young Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Moderating Role of Fear of COVID-19 and Social Support

Friday, November 18, 2022

10:30 AM – 11:30 AM EST

Location: Westside Ballroom, 5th Floor

Author(s)

EZ

Emily Zuckerman, B.A.

Research Associate
NYU School of Medicine
New York, New York

Co-Author(s)

SF

Sara N. Fernandes, M.A.

Clinical Psychology Trainee
Hofstra University
New York, New York
AO

Ana Ortin-Peralta, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor
Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University
New York, New York
RM

Regina Miranda, Ph.D.

Professor of Psychology
Hunter College and The Graduate Center, City University of New York
New York, New York
AB

Argelinda Baroni, M.D.

Clinical Associate Professor
Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone Medical Center
New York, New York

Background
The 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) presents as an unprecedented stressor dramatically impacting mental health, including risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior (STBs), among young adults. This study examined the relationships among risk factors for STBs—sleep, affect, perceived burdensomeness, and thwarted belongingness, in the early months of the pandemic. We also examined whether perceived social support and fear of COVID-19 operated as independent predictors or moderators of those relationships.

Method
Fifty-eight college students, ages 18-35, completed a baseline survey and daily diaries on sleep quality and mental health for up to 30 days. Data were collected from a diverse sample in April and May 2020 in New York City. Multilevel modeling was used to analyze prospective relationships among sleep, affect, interpersonal needs (perceived burdensomeness, thwarted belongingness), perceived social support, and fear of COVID-19.

Results
Higher sleep quality predicted next-day higher positive affect and lower negative affect, but not perceived burdensomeness or thwarted belongingness. The inverse relationships were not statistically significant. While neither perceived social support nor fear of COVID-19 moderated the above relationships, higher perceived social support predicted higher positive affect, lower perceived burdensomeness, and lower thwarted belongingness.

Limitations
This study examined short-term, rather than long-term, impacts of COVID-19 on mental health. Participants were ethnically and racially diverse, but were all undergraduates from a community-based sample in New York City. Thus, findings may not be generalizable to characteristically different groups such as non-college students, those living in small towns, or students attending private colleges.

Conclusions
The present study informs targets for mental health assessment and intervention among young adults impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings support targeting modifiable risk factors (i.e., poor sleep quality) and protective factors (i.e., social support) as tractable avenues for ameliorating STB-related risk.