Predicting Managers’ Mental Health Across Countries Using Country-Level COVID-19 Statistics

Background There is limited research focusing on publicly available statistics on the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic as predictors of mental health across countries. Managers are at risk of suffering from mental disorders during the pandemic because they face particular hardship. Objective We aim to predict mental disorder (anxiety and depression) symptoms of managers across countries using country-level COVID-19 statistics. Methods A two-wave online survey of 406 managers from 26 countries was finished in May and July 2020. We used logistic panel regression models for our main analyses and performed robustness checks using ordinary least squares regressions. In the sample of 406 managers from 26 countries, 26.5% of managers reached the cut-off levels for anxiety (General Anxiety Disorder-7; GAD-7) and 43.5% did so for depression (Patient Health Questionnaire-9; PHQ-9) symptoms. Findings We found that cumulative COVID-19 statistics (e.g., cumulative cases, cumulative cases per million, cumulative deaths, and cumulative deaths per million) predicted managers’ anxiety and depression symptoms positively, whereas daily COVID-19 statistics (daily new cases, smoothed daily new cases, daily new deaths, smoothed daily new deaths, daily new cases per million, and smoothed daily new cases per million) predicted anxiety and depression symptoms negatively. In addition, the reproduction rate was a positive predictor, while stringency of governmental lockdown measures was a negative predictor. Individually, we found that the cumulative count of deaths is the best single predictor of both anxiety and depression symptoms. Conclusions Cumulative COVID-19 statistics predicted managers’ anxiety and depression symptoms positively, while non-cumulative daily COVID-19 statistics predicted anxiety and depression symptoms negatively. Cumulative count of deaths is the best single predictor of both anxiety and depression symptoms. Reproduction rate was a positive predictor, while stringency of governmental lockdown measures was a negative predictor.