Predictive Qualities of Personality, Self-Esteem and Stressors on the Impact of Covid- 19 in Adolescents

Introduction: This study aims to investigate if individual variations in personality, self-esteem, and stressors affected the impact of Covid-19 on academic performances,social lives, and mental health of adolescents. Methods: 172 (114 female, 58 male) participants aged 13-19 years attending a boardingschool in New Jersey, USA, completed 16 multiple choice items; the Ten ItemPersonality Inventory (measuring the Big Five personality traits), the single-item self-esteem scale, and the Adolescent Stressors Questionnaire (ASQ-14). Data werecollected using an online survey over a two-week period in March 2022. Results: Despite Covid-19 being on a decline from November 2020 to March 2022,students rated mental health as continuing to be negatively impacted. It was also foundthat personality traits, particularly emotional stability, extraversion, andconscientiousness were correlated with a greater severity of impact across multipleaspects of the pandemic. Self-esteem and stressors were also associated with multipleaspects. However, only stressors were predictive of academic impact in a structuralequation model. Conclusions: Given the associations observed in the current study, it is likely thatadolescents experiencing greater stress may be at a greater risk of the Covid-19pandemic negatively impacting their mental health. Targeted mental health interventionsshould be implemented for these high-risk groups. Future research could considerinvestigating moderating effects between severity of Covid-19 impact and individualdifferences.