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The psychological impact of coronavirus on university students and its socioeconomic determinants in Malaysia

Author

Listed:
  • Irfan, Muhammad
  • Shahudin, Faizah
  • Hooper, Vincent
  • Akram, Waqar
  • Ghani, Rosmaiza

Abstract

This article examines the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) upon university students’ anxiety level and finds the factors associated with the anxiety disorder in Malaysia. We collected data from 958 students from 16 different universities using an originally designed questionnaire. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale 7-item (GAD-7) was used to estimate the anxiety. We find that 12.3% students were normal, whereas 30.5% were experiencing mild, 31.1% moderate, and 26.1% severe anxiety. Surprisingly, only 37.2% of students were aware of mental health support which was provided by their universities. Moreover, it was found that gender as male (Odds Ratio (OR= 0.798, 95% Confidence Interval (CI)= 0.61 - 1.04)) and having internet access (OR = 0.44, 95% CI= 0.24 - 0.80) were alleviating factors for the anxiety. Whereas, age above than 20 years (OR= 1.30, 95% CI= 0.96 - 1.75), ethnicity Chinese (OR=1.72, 95% CI= 0.95 - 3.1), any other disease (OR=2.0, 95% CI=1.44 - 2.79), decreased family income (OR=1.71, 95% CI=1.34 - 2.17), more time spent on watching COVID-19 related news (OR=1.52, 95% CI=1.17 -1.97), and infected relative or friends (OR=1.62, 95% CI=1.06 - 2.50) were risk factors for anxiety among students. We suggest that the government of Malaysia should monitor the mental health of the universities’ students more closely and universities should open online mental health support clinics to avoid the adverse impacts of the anxiety disorder.

Suggested Citation

  • Irfan, Muhammad & Shahudin, Faizah & Hooper, Vincent & Akram, Waqar & Ghani, Rosmaiza, 2020. "The psychological impact of coronavirus on university students and its socioeconomic determinants in Malaysia," MPRA Paper 103808, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:103808
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    Cited by:

    1. Bentham Liang Sen Teh & Jin Kiat Ang & Eugene Boon Yau Koh & Nicholas Tze Ping Pang, 2023. "Psychological Resilience and Coping Strategies with Anxiety among Malaysian Medical Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-16, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Covid-19; Anxiety; GAD7; online Learning.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I0 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - General

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