Stress Among the Adult Population During COVID-19 Pandemic in Kedah, Malaysia: Association Between Sociodemographics and the Movement Control Order Period

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in the prevalence of stress worldwide. However, the extent and factors associated with psychological distress during COVID-19 among the local population in Kedah, Malaysia, have not been adequately explored. This study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with stress among the adult population in Kedah, Malaysia, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods We conducted a cross-sectional study using a retrospective record review. A simple random sampling was applied among the adult population of Kedah who were screened for mental health well-being from January 2021 until March 2022. A proforma checklist that consists of sociodemographic and clinical factors and the date of screening was used to collect the data. A descriptive and multiple logistic regression was conducted, and analysis was done by SPSS version 26 (IBM Inc., Armonk, New York). The dependent variables were the presence of stress incorporated self-reported symptoms ranging from mild to very severe. The independent variables were sociodemographic, clinical factors, and movement control order period, which refers to the period when the state of Kedah experienced all the different phases of movement control order (MCO), which were from 1 January 2021 until 28 June 2021. Results In total, 562 adults were included. The mean age was 31.75 years, and the majority were female (69.6%). The prevalence of stress was 45.7% (95% CI 41.6%, 49.8%), with a total of 257 people. The majority of them did not have stress, consisting of 305 people (54.3%), followed by 69 people (12.3%) who reported severe stress, 67 people (11.9%) who reported moderate, 66 people (11.7%) who reported mild, and 55 people (9.8%) who reported very severe stress. The significant factor associated with stress among the adult population in Kedah, Malaysia, during the COVID-19 pandemic was the female gender (Adj OR 3.035 95% CI: 2.007 to 4.591, p-value <0.001). Being unemployed (Adj OR 2.171 95% CI: 1.480 to 3.185, p-value <0.001) and being under movement control order period was also associated with stress (Adj OR 0.383 95% CI: 0.264 to 0.555, p-value <0.001). Conclusion The prevalence of stress among the adult population during the COVID-19 pandemic in Kedah was 45.7%, with a total of 257 people, higher than other studies. Being female and unemployed was associated with stress, while the movement control order period was a protective factor against stress. Preventive strategies should be tailored based on the vulnerabilities of these groups, such as the development of more effective community-based interventions for safeguarding the mental health of the general public during future pandemics.