The effect of COVID-19 on fear, anxiety, and sleep in nursing students

PURPOSE: This research was conducted to determine the effect of COVID-19 on fear, anxiety, and sleep in nursing students. METHODS: The sample of the study consisted of 1222 students in the 2019–2020 academic year who were members of the student nurses association. The data were collected online via Google Form between June and August 2020 using the student information form containing socio-demographic characteristics, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item (GAD-7) Scale, the fear of COVID-19 scale, and the Bergen Insomnia Scale. RESULTS: In our study, the mean score of the fear of COVID-19 scale of nursing students was 18.23 ± 6.31, and it was determined that 51.8% had sleep problems and 70.9% had anxiety (39.9% mild, 20.8% moderate, and 10.2% severe). In simple linear regression analysis, the fear of COVID-19 was found to be statistically significant and positively correlated with anxiety (β: 0.383, p = 0.001), and the fear of COVID-19 (β: 0.120, p = 0.001) and anxiety (β: 0.346, p = 0.001) was found to be statistically significant and positively correlated with sleep. CONCLUSION: In our study, there is a relationship between nursing students’ fear of COVID-19 and anxiety and sleep quality. Accordingly, it is recommended to train students in effective methods for coping with the fear of COVID-19, and to take initiatives to reduce related anxiety and sleep problems.