Results of a study conducted by social psychologists from the University of Warsaw and Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań suggest that participation in the protests against the sentence of the Polish Constitutional Court concerning abortion in the cases of a threat to the health and life of the fetus weakened the influence of the threat by COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health. Wnuk, A., Oleksy, T., Gambin, M., Woźniak-Prus, M., Łyś, A., & Holas, P. (2023). Collective action mitigates the negative effects of COVID-19 threat and anti-abortion restrictions on mental health. Social Science & Medicine, 335, 116225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116225
Many studies (e.g., Dragan et al., 2021; Gambin et al., 2021) demonstrate that the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to a deterioration of mental health in society. Other studies (e.g., Jaśko et al., 2019) demonstrate that social activity is associated with higher well-being and good mental health. Researchers from the University of Warsaw and Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań (Wnuk et al., 2023) decided to find out whether the link between the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic and depressive and anxiety symptoms differed among persons who participated in the protests concerning the aforementioned sentence of the Polish Constitutional Court and among those who did not participate in the protests.
To check it, they analyzed two measurements that were part of a panel study concerning the psychological functioning of Polish people during the COVID-19 pandemic, conducted in December 2020 and April 2021. It turned out that the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic was associated with a higher level of depressive and anxiety symptoms only among people who did not participate in the protests. Further analyses demonstrated that this result among people who participated in the protests may be due to the sense of agency and solidarity with other protesters.
References:
Dragan, M., Grajewski, P., & Shevlin, M. (2021). Adjustment disorder, traumatic stress, depression and anxiety in Poland during an early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 12(1), 1860356. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2020.1860356
Gambin, M., Sękowski, M., Woźniak-Prus, M., Wnuk, A., Oleksy, T., Cudo, A., Hansen, K., Huflejt-Łukasik, M., Kubicka, K., Łyś, A. E., Gorgol, J., Holas, P., Kmita, G., Łojek, E., & Maison, D. (2021). Generalized anxiety and depressive symptoms in various age groups during the COVID-19 lockdown in Poland. Specific predictors and differences in symptoms severity. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 105, 152222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2020.152222
Jasko, K., Szastok, M., Grzymala‐Moszczynska, J., Maj, M., & Kruglanski, A. W. (2019). Rebel with a cause: Personal significance from political activism predicts willingness to self‐sacrifice. Journal of Social Issues, 75(1), 314–349. https://doi.org/10.1111/josi.12307
Wnuk, A., Oleksy, T., Gambin, M., Woźniak-Prus, M., Łyś, A., & Holas, P. (2023). Collective action mitigates the negative effects of COVID-19 threat and anti-abortion restrictions on mental health. Social Science & Medicine, 335, 116225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116225
