Psychological cost of Hong Kong's zero-COVID policy: three-wave repeated cross-sectional study of pandemic fatigue, pandemic fear and emotional well-being from peak pandemic to living-with-COVID policy shift.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Hong Kong's 3-year dynamic zero-COVID policy has caused prolonged exposure to stringent, pervasive anti-epidemic measures, which poses additional stressors on emotional well-being through pandemic fatigue, beyond the incumbent fear of the pandemic.

Aims

To investigate how major policy shifts in the zero-COVID strategy have corresponded with changing relationships between emotional well-being, pandemic fatigue from policy adherence, and pandemic fear, following the pandemic peak to a living-with-COVID policy.

Method

A three-wave repeated cross-sectional study (N = 2266) was conducted on the Chinese working-age population (18-64 years) during the peak outbreak (Wave 1), and subsequent policy shifts towards a living-with-COVID policy during the initial

SUBMITTER: Lau SSS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12001963 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature