Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-lj6df Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-07T05:19:11.209Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Translation and validation of the Greek versions of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale, the Obsession with COVID-19 Scale and the Coronavirus Reassurance-Seeking Behaviors Scale

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 August 2024

M. Bakola
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
K. S. Kitsou
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
V. Angelidou
Affiliation:
2Postgraduate Program of Health Management, Frederick University of Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus
A. Giannakopoulos
Affiliation:
3Department of Mathematics
M. Drakopoulou
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
K. Mavridou
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
P. Kalianezos
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
K. Argyropoulos
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
C. Petropoulos
Affiliation:
3Department of Mathematics
G. Charalambous
Affiliation:
2Postgraduate Program of Health Management, Frederick University of Nicosia, Nicosia, Cyprus
P. Gourzis*
Affiliation:
4Department of Psychiatry, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
S. A. Lee
Affiliation:
5Department of Psychology, Christopher Newport University, Newport News, United States
E. Jelastopulu
Affiliation:
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, University of Patras, Patras, Greece
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Introduction

Understanding coronophobia, or the heightened fear and anxiety related to the COVID-19 pandemic, involves assessing physiological, cognitive, and behavioral measures.

Objectives

We aimed to develop a Greek version of the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS), the Obsession with COVID-19 Scale (OCS), and the Coronavirus Reassurance-Seeking Behaviors Scale (CRBS), to identify groups that appear vulnerable to this form of pandemic-related anxiety.

Methods

We conducted a cross-sectional online study from February to April 2021 in Greek-speaking people living in Cyprus. Participants completed sociodemographic questions and questions related to COVID-19, the CAS, OCS, and the CRBS. All three scales are rated on a 5-point scale, from 0 (not at all) to 4 (nearly every day). For CAS, a score ≥ 9 indicates probable dysfunctional coronavirus-related anxiety, for OCS a ≥ 7 score indicates probable dysfunctional thinking about COVID-19, and for CRBS score ≥ 12 suggests above-average reassurance-seeking activity.

Results

A total of 405 adults (66.4% women) from Cyprus participated in this study. The results of this study demonstrate that these Greek adapted measures have adequate reliability (Cronbach’s alphas >0.70) and factor structure (exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis support). However, only the CAS demonstrated both convergent and divergent validity. Education personnel, housekeepers, and older adults were also found to have higher coronavirus anxiety relative to their counterparts.

Conclusions

The findings of this research support the use of these coronaphobia scales in Cyprus and other Greek-speaking populations. Assessing the potential for fear-driven behaviors may be of great benefit to both clinicians and researchers, helping to identify individuals at risk, adapt interventions, and improve our understanding of the psychological consequences of surviving a public health emergency.

Disclosure of Interest

None Declared

Type
Abstract
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of European Psychiatric Association
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.