Effects of perceived social isolation, fear of social isolation, and gratitude during COVID-19 pandemic on anxiety in Malaysia

Abstract

Many governments including Malaysia imposed movement restrictions as a public health measure to minimize COVID-19 (coronavirus) risks. Due to prolonged isolation, poorer physical and mental health are expected in the general population. Our aims were to examine (1) the mediating role of perceived social isolation (SI) and fear of social isolation (FSI) on the relationship between gratitude and anxiety, and (2) to explore the moderating role of age, education, and socioeconomic status (SES) on the mediation model. A total of 427 participants currently living in Malaysia ( M age = 37.90, SD = 16.51, 313 females) completed a survey on isolation, gratitude, and anxiety during a period of national lockdown. Results showed that that those with higher gratitude reported having less SI and FSI and less anxiety (Model 1). In Model 2 with age as moderator, young adults (YA) and middle-aged adults (MA) who had higher gratitude experienced lower SI and in turn had lowered anxiety, but such a mediating role of SI was not observed among older adults (OA). As for FSI, MA who had higher gratitude had lower FSI and also lower anxiety but this relationship was not observed in YA or OA. We also examined the role of education and SES as moderators in the parallel mediation analysis. Results showed that the indirect association of gratitude with anxiety via FI and FSI was moderated by both education and SES. Specifically, among those with low education levels (regardless of SES), those with higher gratitude had lower SI and FSI, which in turn reduced anxiety. This relationship is similar for those with medium levels of education and from low and middle levels of SES as well. Our findings highlight the importance of having some coping mechanism, for example, gratitude and social connection, during the pandemic to have higher well-being and quality of life, especially for MA sample and people from low education and SES backgrounds.