IMPACT OF POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS ASSOCIATED WITH COVID-19 AFTER TWO YEARS OF THE PANDEMIC: DIFFERENCES IN LATENT MEANS IN ECUADORIAN ADULTS

The aim of the present study was to estimate the impact of COVID-19 on post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in a sample of Ecuadorian adults two years after the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 516 individuals were surveyed (55.2% women), aged between 18 and 65 years old (M = 24.33; SD = 8.98), 64% of which reported that they had been infected with COVID-19 during the pandemic period. The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity Scale-Revised (EGS-R) was used. Latent means using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and cross-sectional techniques were applied. The results showed that the group that had been infected presented more PTSS than the non-infected group with significant differences (p <.05) and a small effect size (d = 0.22). The group that had experienced the infection or death of family members showed more PTSS than the group that had not, with significant differences (p <.05) and a moderate effect size (d = 0.40). The findings suggest that COVID-19 had an impact as a traumatic stressor whose presence was still evident through PTSS among those who had experienced the disease directly or indirectly, the latter group being the most affected.