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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1480416
This article is part of the Research Topic Environmental Risk Factors for Depression: Unveiling Pathways to Resilience and Public Mental Health Equity View all 9 articles

Selected Determinants of Anxiety and Depression Symptoms in Adolescents Aged 11 to 15 in Relation to the Pandemic COVID-19 and the War in Ukraine

Provisionally accepted
Izabela Anna Grzankowska Izabela Anna Grzankowska *Małgorzata WÓJTOWICZ-SZEFLER Małgorzata WÓJTOWICZ-SZEFLER Monika Deja Monika Deja
  • Kazimierz Wielki University of Bydgoszcz, Bydgoszcz, Poland

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which began in early 2020, and the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2022 (a country bordering Poland on the east) have significantly impacted the mental health of young people in Poland, leading to increased rates of depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. It can be assumed that for young people, maintaining mental health under the influence of social stressors, such as the pandemic and the ongoing war in Ukraine, depends on the ability to adapt positively, which is the ability of young individuals to adjust to situational demands in a way that allows them to effectively manage those situations.The aim of the conducted study was to determine whether social stressors, namely the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, and intrapsychic factors such as beliefs about oneself, others, life, and the world, influence the occurrence of anxiety and depression symptoms in Polish youth.The study was conducted using the Revised Children's Anxiety and Depression Scale (RCADS), the Questionnaire of Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, and World Attitudes (QIIWA), as well as a survey created by the researchers containing questions about well-being in relation to the pandemic, remote learning, and the ongoing war in Poland's neighboring country. The study included 945 adolescents aged 11 to 15 years (M=13.10; SD=1.11), representing a sample of youth from 14 regions of Poland. The results and analyses are presented from three perspectives: A) the occurrence of anxiety and depression symptoms in relation to the gender and age of the respondents, B) the significance of situational experiences, such as the COVID-19 pandemic (Q1), remote learning (Q2), and the outbreak of the war in Ukraine (Q3) for the occurrence of anxiety and depression symptoms in Polish youth, and C) other determinants of anxiety and depression symptoms in Polish youth, such as intrapsychic variables including self-esteem, satisfaction with relationships with others, and views on the world and life.

    Keywords: Mental Health, intrapsychic factors, social stressors, COVID-19 pandemic, War in Ukraine, adolescents

    Received: 13 Aug 2024; Accepted: 19 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Grzankowska, WÓJTOWICZ-SZEFLER and Deja. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Izabela Anna Grzankowska, Kazimierz Wielki University of Bydgoszcz, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.