Anxiety, depression and stress among female medical students during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and their association with family functioning, coping and personality

Background and Aims: This research examined anxiety, depression, and stress levels in female medical students during the second wave of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the association between these variables and family functioning, coping, and personality factors. Materials and Methods: The cross-sectional online observational study was conducted using Google Forms. Anxiety, depression, and stress were assessed using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), family functioning using Family Adaptability, Partnership, Growth, Affection, and Resolve, coping using Brief COPE, and personality using the Big Five Inventory 10-item version. Results: Out of 750 students, 500 thoroughly responded to the online survey. Based on the DASS-21 scores, 57.6% of participants had some stress, 63.4% had some anxiety, and 54.8% had some degree of depression. Anxiety, depression, and stress were highly correlated with each other. Stress, anxiety, and depression were weakly linked with problem-focused coping, moderately correlated with emotion-focused coping, and strongly correlated with avoidant coping. Better family functioning was associated with lesser self-reported stress, anxiety, and depression. Neuroticism was associated with higher anxiety, depression, and stress, while agreeableness and conscientiousness were with lower psychological distress. Conclusion: High level of psychological suffering was prevalent among medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their anxiety, depression, and stress must be adequately managed.