Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Framework
The cultural emphasis [among non-Western people] is on dependency and interdependency rather than the autonomy and individualisation on which many western ideas about mental injury are predicated.
In the context of exposure to significant adversity, whether psychological, environmental, or both, resilience is both the capacity of individuals to navigate their way to health-sustaining resources, including opportunities to experience feelings of well-being, and a condition of the individual’s family, community and culture to provide these health resources and experiences in culturally meaningful ways.[28] (p. 225)
There are some mainstays of Iranian society, such as the importance of family, the proud adherence to local culture and traditions, and the tendencies toward post-modern ways of life and ways of thinking that influence the choice of coping strategies.
Culture is shared learned behavior and meanings that are socially transferred in various life-activity settings for purposes of individual and collective adjustment and adaptation. Cultures can be (1) transitory (i.e., situational even for a few minutes), (2) enduring (e.g., ethnocultural life styles), and in all instances are (3) dynamic (i.e., constantly subject to change and modification. Cultures are represented (4) internally (i.e., values, beliefs, attitudes, axioms, orientations, epistemologies, consciousness levels, perceptions, expectations, personhood) and (5) externally (i.e., artifacts, roles, institutions, social structures). Cultures (6) shape and construct our realities (i.e., they contribute to our world views, perceptions, orientations) and with this, our concepts of normality/abnormality, morality, aesthetics, and a number of arbiters of life.
3. Aims
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- Q1. How strongly do academics in Iran rate their level of resiliency (measured using the CD-RISC 2, and disaggregated by gender and age group)?
- -
- Q2. How strongly do academics in Iran rate their health (disaggregated by gender and age group)?
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- Q3. How strong are family, religion/spirituality, work/school, and friends as life meaning factors among academics in Iran?
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- Q4. What is the correlation between self-rated health status and CD-RISC and coping methods, respectively, among academics in Iran?
4. Materials and Methods
4.1. Sampling
4.2. Procedure
4.3. Measures
4.4. Data Analysis Methods
4.5. Ethics
5. Results
5.1. Resilience
5.2. Self-Rated Health
5.3. Life Meaning
5.4. Self-Rated Health, Resilience and Coping Methods
6. Discussion
In the configuration of the identity of Iranians, characterized by the ideas of other-identification and negation of individuality, family relationships and ties of friendship play important roles. Actually, the alter-ego type of definition of family members and of friends is essential in Iranian culture, as it is in other Islamic cultures.
7. Conclusions
7.1. Limitations
7.2. Future Research and Policy Recommendations
- Future research should clearly focus on the ecological framework of resilience in the context of COVID-19, paying attention to individual, environmental, and meaning dimensions.
- This study conducted a simple analysis of univariate correlation (Pearson’s correlation). A multivariate analysis, such as regression analysis, adjusting for age, sex, and location, is required for future research to strengthen our findings.
- Qualitative and mixed-method studies provide better data for understanding the meaning-making processes in resilience. Such studies would add to the knowledge base on dealing with COVID-19 and its psychological consequences.
- In clinical settings and during interventions for building and improving resilience in academic people after a pandemic, a holistic approach, including personal, micro, meso, and macro dimensions of resilience, may be more beneficial.
- Revise and adapt, in a contextual way, structural resources in society to better balance individual capacity resources for resilience.
- Academics can in times of crises benefit from adhering to individual and social dimensions of meaning-making, as well as searching for a balance between the obstacles and opportunities in their environment.
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
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Variable | Frequency | Percentage | |
---|---|---|---|
Gender | Male | 49 | 25 |
Female | 147 | 75 | |
Age | <25 years old | 61 | 31 |
25–35 years old | 76 | 39 | |
>35 years old | 59 | 30 | |
Education | High school or similar | 4 | 2 |
University | 192 | 98 | |
Country of birth | Iran | 194 | 99 |
Afghanistan | 2 | 1 | |
Country of residence | Iran | 194 | 99 |
Switzerland | 2 | 1 | |
Work/student status | Full-time employment | 49 | 25 |
Part-time employment | 27 | 14 | |
Campus student | 43 | 22 | |
Distance-learning student | 77 | 39 | |
Civil status | Married | 74 | 38 |
Divorced | 4 | 2 | |
Engaged | 8 | 4 | |
Single | 110 | 56 | |
Children | Children | 45 | 23 |
No children | 151 | 77 | |
Place of residence | Capital | 114 | 58 |
Medium–large city | 33 | 17 | |
Small town, close to a large city | 37 | 19 | |
Small town, far from a large city | 12 | 6 |
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Ahmadi, F.; Cetrez, Ö.A.; Zandi, S. Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20, 4844. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20064844
Ahmadi F, Cetrez ÖA, Zandi S. Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2023; 20(6):4844. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20064844
Chicago/Turabian StyleAhmadi, Fereshteh, Önver Andreas Cetrez, and Saeid Zandi. 2023. "Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 20, no. 6: 4844. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20064844