Just as Essential: The Mental Health of Educators During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Alyssa Schneider Carlson; Manny S Stegall; Zoe Sirotiak; Felipe Herrmann; Emily B K Thomas

doi:10.1017/dmp.2023.231

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Just as Essential: The Mental Health of Educators During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Just as Essential: The Mental Health of Educators During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Alyssa Schneider Carlson, Manny S Stegall, Zoe Sirotiak, Felipe Herrmann and Emily B K Thomas

Disaster medicine and public health preparedness, Vol.18, e6

01/18/2024

DOI: 10.1017/dmp.2023.231

PMCID: PMC10904175

PMID: 38234124

Appears in UI Libraries Support Open Access

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Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic deleteriously impacted physical and mental health. In the summer of 2020, return-to-learn plans were enacted, including virtual, hybrid, and in-person plans, impacting educators and students. We examined (1) how return-to-learn plan was related to depressive and social anxiety symptoms among educators and (2) how psychological flexibility related to symptoms. Educators (= 853) completed a survey via Qualtrics that assessed internalizing symptoms, psychological flexibility, and occupational characteristics. Two one-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) examined between-group differences in return-to-learn plans across depression and social anxiety. Two hierarchical linear regressions examined the relation between psychological flexibility components and depressive and social anxiety symptoms. Median-scores were well above the national normative means for General Depression (median-score: 81) and Social Anxiety (median-score: 67). There were no significant differences between reopening plans in general depression nor social anxiety-scores. Psychological flexibility accounted for 33% of the variance in depressive symptoms and 24% of the variance in social anxiety symptoms. Results indicated high levels of psychiatric symptoms among educators during COVID-19, and psychological flexibility was associated with lower symptoms. Addressing educator mental health is of utmost importance in future research.

COVID-19

depression

anxiety

educators

Teaching/Learning

psychological flexibility

UIOWA OA Agreement

Details

Title: Subtitle: Just as Essential: The Mental Health of Educators During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Creators: Alyssa Schneider Carlson - University of Iowa
Manny S Stegall - University of Iowa, Psychological and Brain Sciences
Zoe Sirotiak - University of Iowa, Psychological and Brain Sciences
Felipe Herrmann - Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
Emily B K Thomas - University of Iowa, Psychological and Brain Sciences
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Disaster medicine and public health preparedness, Vol.18, e6
DOI: 10.1017/dmp.2023.231
PMID: 38234124
PMCID: PMC10904175
NLM abbreviation: Disaster Med Public Health Prep
ISSN: 1935-7893
eISSN: 1938-744X
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Grant note: T32 GM108540 / NIGMS NIH HHS
Language: English
Date published: 01/18/2024
Academic Unit: Psychological and Brain Sciences
Record Identifier: 9984546950302771

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