A1 Journal article (refereed)
Illness Perceptions of COVID-19 in Europe : Predictors, Impacts and Temporal Evolution (2021)


Dias Neto, D., Nunes da Silva, A., Roberto, M. S., Lubenko, J., Constantinou, M., Nicolaou, C., Lamnisos, D., Papacostas, S., Höfer, S., Presti, G., Squatrito, V., Vasiliou, V. S., McHugh, L., Monestès, J.-L., Baban, A., Alvarez-Galvez, J., Paez-Blarrina, M., Montesinos, F., Valdivia-Salas, S., . . . Kassianos, A. P. (2021). Illness Perceptions of COVID-19 in Europe : Predictors, Impacts and Temporal Evolution. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, Article 640955. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.640955


JYU authors or editors


Publication details

All authors or editors: Dias Neto, David; Nunes da Silva, Ana; Roberto, Magda Sofia; Lubenko, Jelena; Constantinou, Marios; Nicolaou, Christiana; Lamnisos, Demetris; Papacostas, Savvas; Höfer, Stefan; Presti, Giovambattista; et al.

Journal or series: Frontiers in Psychology

eISSN: 1664-1078

Publication year: 2021

Publication date: 14/04/2021

Volume: 12

Article number: 640955

Publisher: Frontiers Media SA

Publication country: Switzerland

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.640955

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Open Access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/75091

Additional information: Corrigendum: Illness perceptions of COVID-19 in Europe: predictors, impacts and temporal evolution http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1227506


Abstract

Objective: Illness perceptions (IP) are important predictors of emotional and behavioral responses in many diseases. The current study aims to investigate the COVID-19-related IP throughout Europe. The specific goals are to understand the temporal development, identify predictors (within demographics and contact with COVID-19) and examine the impacts of IP on perceived stress and preventive behaviors.

Methods: This was a time-series-cross-section study of 7,032 participants from 16 European countries using multilevel modeling from April to June 2020. IP were measured with the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire. Temporal patterns were observed considering the date of participation and the date recoded to account the epidemiological evolution of each country. The outcomes considered were perceived stress and COVID-19 preventive behaviors.

Results: There were significant trends, over time, for several IP, suggesting a small decrease in negativity in the perception of COVID-19 in the community. Age, gender, and education level related to some, but not all, IP. Considering the self-regulation model, perceptions consistently predicted general stress and were less consistently related to preventive behaviors. Country showed no effect in the predictive model, suggesting that national differences may have little relevance for IP, in this context.

Conclusion: The present study provides a comprehensive picture of COVID-19 IP in Europe in an early stage of the pandemic. The results shed light on the process of IP formation with implications for health-related outcomes and their evolution.


Keywords: pandemics; COVID-19; concepts of illness; health behaviour; self-regulation (psychology); stress (biological phenomena); comparative research

Free keywords: illness perceptions; COVID-19; common sense model; illness representations; stress


Contributing organizations


Ministry reporting: Yes

Reporting Year: 2021

JUFO rating: 1


Last updated on 2024-22-04 at 14:54