Risk perception and coping response to COVID-19 mediated by positive and negative emotions: A study on Chinese college students

This study aimed to assess the mediating roles of positive and negative emotions on the relationship between COVID-19-related risk perception and coping behaviours adopted by Chinese college students in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted an internet-based questionnaire survey from mid February-late October 2020, among 1038 college students, from six Chinese universities (females = 73.41%), ranging within 17-26 years. The survey questionnaire included three major components-the COVID-19-Related Risk Perception Scale (CRPS), the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS-Revision), and Coping Response of COVID-19 Scale (CRCS). Descriptive statistics and a mediated model were used to analyse the collected data. A partial mediation relationship was found between COVID-19-related risk perception and 1) active-response behaviour (beta = 0.05, 95% Confidence Interval [CI: 0.03, 0.08]), 2) self-protection behaviour through positive emotions (beta = 0.03, CI [0.01, 0.04]), and 3) risk-taking behaviour through negative emotions (beta = -0.04, CI [-0.07, -0.02]). This study's double-mediation model has been shown to detect the effect coping mechanisms to COVID-19. Furthermore, it implies that public health managers should consider the differences in coping mechanisms and the diverse mediating roles of positive and negative emotions for coping with public health emergencies.

Automated summary

This study examines the mediating effects of positive and negative emotions on the relationship between COVID-19 risk perception and coping strategies among Chinese college students. The results show that positive emotions partially mediate the relationship between risk perception and self-protection behavior, while negative emotions partially mediate the relationship between risk perception and risk-taking behavior.