Factors Contributing to Fear of COVID-19 and its consequence in Mental Health

Abstract

The work intended to determine the effects of fear of COVID-19 on mental health consequences among the participants living in Rajshahi, Bangladesh. Data were collected from Rajshahi division age between 16-51 years surveyed online during the COVID-19 pandemic among the demographic subgroups (gender, educational background, socioeconomic status, marital status, occupation, family types, residential area, getting out of the house or not, income level, health condition, and contamination history). The cross-sectional study was conducted on 641 individuals and the sample comprised 51.3% female and 48.7% male. Personal information form, FCV-19 scale, and GHQ-12 scale were applied to collect relevant data. Data were analyzed by SPSS through t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson’s correlation tests. There was a significant difference among the mean scores of the respondent’s fears of COVID-19 and gender, marital condition, outing during COVID-19 situation, income status. The present study found the fear of COVID-19 negatively affected mental health. Health care providers must take into account the vulnerable groups.