Media Use during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Pathogenic or salutogenic? (Preprint)

Abstract

While exposure to COVID-related stressors, level of peritraumatic distress, and frequency of media use for seeking COVID-related information can increase the risk for trauma- and stressor-related (TSR) symptoms during the pandemic, frequency of social media use for support and connection may buffer these effects.

We examined the associations between COVID-related stressors and frequency of media use for information-seeking on TSR symptoms, with a focus on the indirect effects of social media use for support-seeking and peritraumatic distress.

A path model was tested in an international sample of 5 913 adults who completed an online survey.

COVID-related stressors (β = .25, p <.05) and information-seeking through media (β = .24, p <.05) were significantly associated with TSR symptoms in bivariate comparisons. Levels of peritraumatic distress and frequency of social media use for support were significant intermediary variables (respectively, β=0.71, p<.05; β=.02, p<.05).

Results suggest that exposure to COVID-related stressors and seeking COVID-related information through the media are associated with higher levels of peritraumatic distress and, in turn, higher levels of TSR symptoms. Although exposure to the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic may be unavoidable, the frequency consuming COVID-related information through the media should be approached with caution.

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