Psychological stress and its relation to social distancing among a sample of Saudi during COVID-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND: Over the last year, the world has witnessed an infectious disease (COVID-19) outbreak that has shown a high rate of spread. Therefore, several prevention and mitigation measures have been imposed to control the spread of the virus worldwide. The aim of the current study is to identify the commitment level to social distancing and its relationship to psychological stress among members of Saudi society during COVID-19 pandemic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The descriptive correlational design was employed in the current study, and the sample of the study consisted of 536 Saudis selected using convenient sampling method. The study was conducted in four cities in Saudi Arabia (Altayef, Mecca, and Najran, in 2020 during COVID-19 pandemic using quantitative survey method. Several analysis methods using SPSS software were used to analyze the data such as mean and standard deviation, three-way ANOVA, Scheffe's test, and Pearson correlation. RESULTS: The study revealed that the psychological stress and commitment level to social distancing by the study sample during COVID-19 pandemic was moderate, and differences were observed among the study variables. Furthermore, the study revealed a statistically significant negative correlation between the commitment level to social distancing and the exposure to psychological pressures. CONCLUSION: The study contributed to literature by developing a model to enhance the importance of social distancing of people during COVID-19 pandemic. The study recommends the necessity to provide advice and counseling services that enhance community members’ awareness about the application of social distancing during COVID-19 pandemic.,