Pre-Registration: Trajectories and moderators of COVID-19 mental health adjustment during the transition to adulthood

• In Event: Poster Session 13
  In Poster Session: PS 13 Topic - Developmental Psychopathology

Abstract

Introduction: Prior research underscores the unique developmental challenges that arise during the transition to adulthood. It is during this window that youth must meet educational objectives, forge financial and emotional independence, build lasting relationships, and further explore self-identity. Through this lens, the transition to college is a particularly important milestone. While this transition can be exciting and rewarding for many, it can also be a significant source of stress. Aside from this developmental period being significant, experiencing a major life event such as living through a pandemic may immensely impact this transition to college. The present longitudinal study sought to characterize risk and resilience factors that arise during the first year of college. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic occurred towards the end of the study and the decision was made to continue tracking participants over time to examine whether the same risk and resilience factors could moderate coping in response to this unprecedented event. We thus also examined how coping strategy usage interacted with the onset of the pandemic to predict adjustment and mental health changes in young adults.

Hypotheses: (H1) Participants will report feeling significantly more anxious during the COVID-19 pandemic than they did prior to the outbreak; (H2): Baseline cognitive reappraisal usage will moderate mental health outcomes; and (H3) Baseline expressive suppression usage will moderate mental health outcomes.

Study population: In total, 101 (Mage = 18.36, SD = 0.48, range = 18-19, 80 females) first-year UCLA freshman college students participated in the baseline measure. Whereas, 77 (59 females) students completed all of the four follow-up measures.

Methods: We conducted a longitudinal study with a baseline (T1) session, and four follow-up assessments one (T2), two (T3), four (T4), and five (T5) months after baseline. At baseline, participants completed the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ; Gross & John, 2003) and the Screen for Adult Anxiety Related Disorders (SCAARD; Angulo et al., 2017). The SCAARD was also collected at T2, T3, T4, and T5. Participants enrolled in the study on a rolling basis over the course of four months. Here, the onset of the outbreak was set to March 13, 2020 -- the day that the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a national public health emergency in the United States. Everyone completed the T1 baseline measures prior to the pandemic onset, while the T4 and T5 were completed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty-three and 20 participants completed their T2 and T3 measures respectively prior to the onset of the pandemic.

Results: We plan to conduct linear growth curve modeling analyses in a multilevel modeling framework. We will examine ERQ subscale (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression usage) scores as moderators of anxiety at baseline and over time. We will further model how anxiety trajectories differed before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Feasibility: Data collection is complete, and thus, analyses will be conducted prior to the meeting.

Implications: Understanding what contributes to individual differences in adjustment is essential for developing prevention and intervention programs that optimize outcomes during pivotal and profound life events.

Authors

• Yael Haya Waizman, University of Southern California
  Presenting Author

• Anna Sedykin, University of California, Los Angeles
  Non-Presenting Author

• Joao Guassi Moreira, University of California, Los Angeles
  Non-Presenting Author

• Natalie Saragosa-Harris, University of California, Los Angeles
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jennifer Silvers, University of California - Los Angeles
  Non-Presenting Author

• Tara Peris, UCLA
  Non-Presenting Author