A Cross-Sectional Study Investigating Mental Health Among Turkish Citizens During The COVID-19 Pandemic: The Importance of Perceived Social Support

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the stress burden and related mental problems all over the world. The changes in social life required the examination of psychosocial variables in this period. This study aimed to investigate the levels of depression, anxiety, stress, poor sleep quality, and insomnia in Turkish society during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine the relationship between those and perceived social support. Methods: A total number of 1032 participants completed the online survey form consisting of sociodemographic data form, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-42 (DASS-42), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). A series of univariate and multivariate analyses were used to examine the association of perceived social support with depression, anxiety, stress, poor sleep quality, and insomnia. All tests of associations were carried out at a level of significance of <0.05 and a 95% confidence interval. Results: The proportion of the participants having low perceived social support was 11.2% (n=116), having moderate perceived social support was 27.6% (n=285), having high perceived social support was 61.2 % (n=632). Based on the cut-off values of the relevant scales, the rates of depression, anxiety, high stress, poor sleep quality, and insomnia were found to be 54.6%, 47.6%, 47.8%, 58.8%, and 42.2%, respectively. According to multivariate linear regression analyses, MSPSS scores significantly predicted DASS-depression (p<0.001), DASS-anxiety (p<0.001), DASS-stress (p<0.001), PSQI (p<0.001), and ISI scores (p<0.001). Besides, being aged 18-30, female sex, being unemployed, COVID-19 history, having a chronic disease, and current psychiatric treatment were associated with at least one of the symptom clusters of depression, anxiety, stress, poor sleep quality, and insomnia. Conclusion: The current study indicated that depression, anxiety, high stress, poor sleep quality, and insomnia were prevalent among the participants at the end of the first year of the pandemic. Besides, perceived social support predicts mental health in a favorable way. In this respect, perceived social support is a potential target for individual and community-based therapeutic interventions.