Psychological State of College Students During COVID-19 Epidemic

Background: This study conducted in mainland China was aimed to explore the cognition, psychological state, anxiety and depression level of college students during coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19) epidemic, so as to understand the psychological dynamics of college students under stress. Methods: The data of 509 college students were collected by Internet questionnaire. And the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale and Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale were used to assess anxiety and depression symptoms, respectively. Findings: During the COVID-19 epidemic, the majority of college student strongly agreed to reduce outgoing and gathering, accounting for 77.21%. There were statistical differences between different genders of college students in the unease and panic emotion of risk exposure. Moreover, the anxiety and depression levels of college students in China during COVID-19 epidemic were higher than the national norm level. Besides, logistic regression analysis showed that the panic of epidemic situation (OR = 1.562, CI: 1.019 - 2.396) was the risk factor of anxiety. The number of patients in the area was less than 5000 (OR = 0.165, CI: 0.062-0.439), and the official channels were the main means to obtain information about the COVID-19 epidemic (OR = 0.221, CI: 0.073-0.665), which were the protective factor of anxiety. The unease of risk exposure (OR= 2.298, CI: 1.144-4.618) was a risk factor of depression. And the official channels as the main means to obtain information about the COVID-19 epidemic (OR = 0.412, CI: 0.169 - 1.003) may be the protective factor of depression. Interpretation: During the epidemic of COVID-19, the anxiety and depression level of college students increased significantly, which was also related to multiple factors. Therefore, it is particularly important to carry out necessary psychological intervention on college students.Funding Statement: National Science and Technology Major Project (Number:2018ZX10721102-005).Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no competing interests.Ethics Approval Statement: This study followed the Helsinki Declaration and was approved by the Ethics Committee of Chongqing Medical University.