Association of sense of coherence and resilience with distress and infection prevention behaviors during the coronavirus disease pandemic

Current Psychology https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-023-04359-w Association of sense of coherence and resilience with distress and infection prevention behaviors during the coronavirus disease pandemic Takayoshi Kase1 · Yuki Ueno2 · Shintaro Endo3 Accepted: 1 February 2023 © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2023 Abstract This cross-sectional study investigated the relationships between the sense of coherence (SOC) and resilience and between distress and infection prevention behaviors during the early phase of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The study recruited 1,484 participants (male: 686, female: 798; mean age = 45.1 years, SD = 8.3 years) to complete the SOCL9 scale, the Adolescent Resilience Scale, Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, and the measurement scale of practices of infection prevention behaviors against COVID-19, originally developed by the study in addition to other control variables. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis demonstrated that greater SOC was associated with less distress during the COVID-19 pandemic, even after resilience was controlled for. Additionally, logistic regression analysis revealed that greater resilience was associated with the majority of greater COVID-19 related infection prevention behaviors (IPBs). These results suggest that SOC and resilience were related to degree of distress during the COVID-19 pandemic, such that those with higher resilience tended to engage in IPB. Furthermore, differences in the association of both factors with distress and IPB may indicate a few points of discrimination between SOC and resilience, which include similar concepts. Keywords COVID-19 pandemic · Infection prevention behavior · Sense of coherence · Resilience Introduction In response to the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID19), measures to prevent infection, such as avoidance of the three Cs (3Cs, that is, areas with poor ventilation, crowded areas, and settings where close-range conversations may occur) have been promoted in Japan and have become widely known (Hayasaki, 2020). After lifting the state of emergency at the end of May 2020, the country entered a transitional period in which restrictions on traveling and the use of facilities were gradually alleviated. The continued implementation of the aforementioned measures to prevent infectious diseases has become important in preventing * Takayoshi Kase 1 College of Psychological Sciences, University of Human Environments, 9–12, Dogohimata, Matsuyama‑shi, Ehime 790–0825, Japan 2 The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan 3 Chiba Institute of Technology, Chiba, Japan the re-occurrence of infection. In other words, the degree to which each citizen thoroughly implements preventive behaviors against infectious diseases will greatly influence the future progression of the COVID-19 pandemic (Amsalem et al., 2021; Yonemitsu et al., 2020). In Japan, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan (2020a, b) has proposed “The New Lifestyle,” which includes the following prevention behaviors against COVID-19 that individuals can practice in daily life, such as mask-wearing, handwashing, and social distancing. The habitual practice of these infection-preventive behaviors is one of the most important measures for preventing the spread of infection and is being used as reminders and recommendations. Such infection-prevention behaviors (IPBs) against COVID-19 are considered one of the main topics of studies on COVID-19 in the field of psychology. Brouard et al. (2020) suggested that psychological factors, such as anxiety about COVID-19 and perceived political ideology, promote IPBs, such as mask-wearing. In Japan, Yamagata et al. (2021) found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, there are more opportunities to routinely take IPBs different from normal conditions, and that such an increase in IPBs was associated 13 Vol.:(0123456789) Current Psychology not only with anxiety and risk perception toward COVID-19 but also with the fear of and aversion to physical or spiritual impurity with a gender difference. Furthermore, a review and meta-analysis of studies on the current state of COVID-19 related IPBs in various countries indicated that knowledge about COVID-19 promotes COVID-19 related IPBs, while fatigue and illness, anxiety, and stress, might inhibit COVID19 related IPBs (Saadatjoo et al., 2021). Thus, identifying the psychosocial variables associated with IPBs, similar to the abovementioned studies, is a notable attempt at providing important insights when considering measures for promoting COVID-19 related IPBs. One of the important factors in determining an individual’s health-related behavior, including infection-prevention behavior, is psychological characteristics or personality traits. For example, previous scholars found a relationship between the “Big Five” personality traits and COVID-19 related IPBs among the general population; conscientiousness positively related to individual and social behaviors related to health and infection prevention, whereas extraversion negatively related to IPBs (e.g., Brouard et al., 2020; Carvalho et al., 2020). Other scholars report that conscientiousness is positively related to compliance with COVID-19 protection protocols, whereas extraversion is negatively related among the general population (Brouard et al., 2020). Thus, predicting COVID-19 related IPBs from the perspective of personality traits would render the identification of individuals and groups at high or low risk of COVID-19 possible. Therefore, examining the relationship between psychological characteristics and IPBs, specifically in Japan, is important. The sense of coherence (SOC) is defined as an individual’s perception and the sense that their experiences in the world are coherent, comprehensible, consistent, and meaningful; those with high levels of SOC can cope effectively and flexibly with stressors in the theory of salutogenesis with SOC as a core concept (Antonovsky, 1987). SOC consists of three components: comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness (Antonovsky, 1987). Comprehensibility means that the stimuli encountered in the future will be predictable (Antonovsky, 1987). Manageability refers to the extent to which a person perceives that their resources are adequate to meet the demands (Antonovsky, 1987). Meaningfulness refers to the extent that stimuli are considered worth investing energy in, worthy of commitment, and challenges rather than burdens (Antonovsky, 1987). Moreover, SOC is a strong predictor of mental health or distress among personality traits (Flensborg-Madsen et al., 2005; Grevenstein & Bluemke, 2015) and is associated with the maintenance of mental health even under difficult circumstances (Hochwälder & Forsell, 2011). Simultaneously, it is one of the psychological characteristics reported to be associated with health-related behaviors. For example, in (...truncated)