Abstract:

Although depression, anxiety, and stress were highly prevalent in the general population during the pandemic, some marginalized groups, including patients with mental disorders might have been overlooked in studies. This study examined the relationship between health anxiety, coping strategies, and mental health outcomes, particularly depressive symptoms, anxiety, and stress. The aim of the current study is to examine the mediator role of coping strategies between health anxiety and mental health outcomes in using data from 80 individuals with mental diagnosis. Also, using 168 healthy controls (N = 248 participants), we sought to investigate whether an individuals’ mental diagnoses was associated with their scores on health anxiety, coping strategies, and mental health outcomes. Sociodemographic Information and Health Data Form, Health Anxiety Inventory – Short Form [SHAI], Ways of Coping Strategies [WCQ], and Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale [DASS-42] were given to the participants. Results demonstrated that people with mental illnesses had moderate levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, in contrast to healthy controls. Furthermore, mediator analysis revealed that accepting responsibility significantly mediated the relationship between health anxiety, depression, anxiety, and stress in people with mental illnesses. The findings have suggested that individuals with psychological problems are at risk for adverse mental health outcomes. Furthermore, these findings highlight that therapists should prioritize intervention studies focusing on health anxiety, coping strategies, and mental health outcomes during COVID-19.

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