An Exploratory Study of Psychological Stress Responses and Information Behavior During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This paper attempts an exploratory analysis of the effects of information behavior, social support, and personal network structure on psychosomatic damages among local area residents in the third wave period of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. The dataset was obtained with a survey in Kochi City, Kochi Prefecture. To verify the relationship between psychosomatic damages and information behavior, multiple regression analyses were conducted with four types of damage as dependent variables. The results showed that damage tended to be higher among those with more active information behavior, suggesting the possibility of “doomstrolling”. Damage also tended to be reduced for those who received instrumental support. However, no effect of diversity in personal network structure was found, indicating that a closely-knit network structure may elicit a “pressure cooker” effect. These results suggest that, at the very least, activation of information behavior may have a greater effect on amplifying damage.