Youth relationships during the pandemic Covid-19 matter. A mediating role of social resources on e-learning burnout, well-being, and overeating behaviors

Abstract

Aim: Youth who are engaging themselves in overeating behaviours are at risk of numerous adverse outcomes. Overeating may be also considered as an early warning sign of additional psychological issues, e.g. poor well-being, depression and suicide ideation. Although a vast body of literature has examined pandemic Covid-19 related stressors as potential risk factors for eating problems, no studies have explored e-learning stress and burnout as a characteristic that may contribute to overeating among adolescents during this global crisis. The main goal of this study was to test the mediation effect of social resources on the associations between e-school stress and burnout, adolescents’ psychological well-being and overeating. Method: Path analysis was conducted on the results of the E-Learning Burnout Scale, the Psychological Well-Being Scale, the Short Social Resource scale, and one-item scales for Overeating behaviours and Online School Stress. Cross-sectional data were collected via Google forms from 186 students (M=15.93 years; SD=1.70; 60% girls). Results: Social resources and e-learning burnout had a significant direct effect on overeating behaviours frequency. The significant indirect effect of psychological well-being via social resources on overeating behaviours was confirmed, however the indirect effect of e-learning burnout was insignificant. Student stress had a significant indirect effect on overeating behaviours via e-learning burnout, and via social resources. Conclusions: E-learning stress and burnout during the Covid-19 pandemic are directly related to the reduction of the individuals’ resources used to effectively cope with negative emotions and distress in everyday life, which, in turn, may heighten the risk of engaging in overeating behaviours. Keywords: overeating behaviours, online student burnout, social resources, adolescence