A biopsychosocial model of severe fear of COVID-19, 2022, Nürnberger et al

Abstract

Introduction
COVID-19 is a respiratory infection that causes not only somatic health issues, but also frequently psychosocial burdens. The aims of this study were to investigate biopsychosocial factors that might further aggravate fear of COVID-19, and to establish a biopsychosocial model of severe fear of COVID-19.

Methods
368 participants were included in this study. Biopsychosocial factors observed comprised biological factors (somatic risk), psychological factors (state/trait anxiety, physical symptoms of anxiety, severe health anxiety, specific phobias, depression), and psychosocial factors (social support, financial losses, social media consumption, social contacts with COVID-19 infected people). Psychometric questionnaires included State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Beck’s Anxiety Inventory, Whiteley-Index / Illness Attitude Scales, Specific Phobia Questionnaire, WHO-5 and Social Support Survey.

Results
162/368 (44.0%) participants had almost no fear, 170/368 (46.2%) participants had moderate fear, and 45/368 (12.2%) participants had severe fear of COVID-19. Female participants showed higher levels of fear of COVID-19 than male participants (gender: χ2 = 18.47, p<0.001). However, the level of fear of COVID-19 increased in male participants when they had contact with people who were infected with COVID-19, while in contrast the level of fear of COVID-19 decreased in female participants when they had such contacts [ANCOVA: fear of COVID-19 (contact x gender): F(1,363) = 5.596, p = .019]. Moreover, participants without relationships showed higher levels of fear of COVID-19 (marital status: χ2 = 14.582, p = 0.024). Furthermore, financial losses due to the COVID-19 were associated with higher levels of fear of COVID-19 [ANCOVA: fear of COVID-19(financial loss x gender): F(1, 363) = 22.853, p< .001]. Multiple regression analysis revealed female gender, severe health anxiety (WI-IAS) and state /trait anxiety (STAI) as significant predictors of severe fear of COVID-19.

Conclusion
In this study significant predictors of severe fear of COVID-19 were female gender, pre-existing state and trait anxiety, as well as severe health anxiety. The finding of significant predictors of fear of COVID-19 might contribute to detect people who might suffer most from severe, overwhelming fear of COVID-19 at an early stage.

Open access, https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0264357

 

That is simplifying it and downplaying its effects rather a lot, and isn't a true reflection of what Covid does to people. It affects lots of bodily systems, not just the lungs.

Healthy men have never been prone to taking health issues as seriously as they should. And women have many reasons for being fearful about serious disease.

a) If they die or become disabled their children/ageing parents/other relatives they care for might be left to fend for themselves.
b) If they are poor they may not be able to afford medical treatment for themselves or their families - and women are more often poor than men and they get paid less.
c) Women's symptoms are downplayed and minimised practically all the time, so they can expect to suffer more than men before they get treatment (if any is available).

I could probably come up with a few more reasons why women have more reason to fear ill-health than men. But no, no - it must be because they are so anxious or depressed, and they suffer health anxiety (aka hypochondria).

 

The whole framing of fear is absurd. It's perfectly normal not to want to be sick, in fact it's not only good, it's evolutionary good for survival of the species. It's got to the point where being rational and accurately predicting issues is turned into a mental illness. Frankly the real mental illness here is people who think this is serious work, talk about having irrational thoughts and beliefs.

Saying "I don't want this to happen to me" is normal and good and never let anyone tell you otherwise. What a bunch of nonsense. Just because these people don't understand that things happening to other people are different than what is happening to them and that it's not irrational to think differently if there are good reasons.

 

Wouldn't this have been a more useful study if it had been about why people are afraid to get Covid vaccination?

Now with the vaccine covid fear (such as it might have been / I doubt this paper contains any hint of useful knowledge) is not really an issue.

And again, just from the conclusions, the BPS model refuses to look anywhere for the key to what might be happening except under the light (meaning: to use an alternative metaphor, where the low hanging fruit is). Really they are not much for working a thing out if it takes anything more than a trivial effort.

The authors are from Graz University Austria and they received no specific funding.

Collectively these BPS papers all say more about the authors than any of the patient participants.

 

I agree with you @rvallee, that being rational has been turned into a mental illness.

An example additional to the fear of a terrible illness, is grieving the loss of a very dear loved one for a couple months. This has been seen as a mental health problem, not an accepted, normal reaction. And this mental health label given even though the grieving person very shortly got on with work, projects, socializing etc.

 

We must not fear - or seek to delay - illness and death. We must not grieve, either for others or for our own losses.

Such reactions will not be tolerated, and are so alien as to need BPS "models" to explain them.

Genuinely reminds me of totalitarian states as depicted in works of dystopian and speculative fiction.