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The "Kako smo?" project Examining mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic in Croatia

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the aftermath of an earthquake, the Kako smo? project was created by a group of psychologists in Zagreb, Croatia interested in examining the consequences of these events on the mental health of people living in Croatia. As experts in diverse areas of psychology, we shared a common aim to examine the ways in which people experienced changes to their ways of life and personal relationships during the pandemic, the degree to which people experienced various sources of stress and the consequences of this stress on mental health. Using this shared motivation along with the unique knowledge and skills of each member, an interactive, ' omnibus' questionnaire was constructed that aimed to examine these questions as they related to life with our families and partners, to work life and professional roles and to the specific experiences of students, children and the elderly. Data was collected via an online survey in May, 2020. In total, over 3500 people between the ages of 18 and 95 years and 780 school-aged children and youth participated in the study. Results indicated that around 40% of participants experienced psychological difficulties, predominantly in the form of stress and depressive symptoms. Especially vulnerable were those who experienced psychological problems prior to the pandemic, parents of young children, employees working exclusively from home and those without routine or balance between work and family obligations. Around 18% of children and 30% of young people exhibited high distress levels, mostly attributed to the earthquake. Among children, primary worries were that someone close to them would get sick and those related to online school. Through ongoing analysis, we aim to gain further understanding of the mediating role played by various factors on mental health outcomes and provide recommendations for measures to ensure our mental health as well as physical health during pandemic.

COVID-19 pandemic ; mental health ; omnibus study

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