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The promoter of prosocial behavior in fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic needs to be examined. Here, we examined the effect of experienced awe through cross-sectional (Study 1), a 3-wave longitudinal (Study 2) and experimental (Study 3–4) approaches. Study 1 showed that dispositional awe positively predicted one's prosocial behavior in the pandemic (N = 1281). Study 2 (N = 332) observed that experienced awe predicted higher prosociality, and this relationship was serially mediated by connectedness and empathy. Study 3 (N = 153) and 4 (N = 156) confirmed that elicited awe, compared to that of amusement and neutrality, promoted multiple types of prosociality (Study 3) and willingness of blood donation (Study 4) via serial mediation of connectedness and empathy. These findings suggest that the experience of awe increases one's connectedness to the world, which in turn enhances empathic concern and prosociality in pandemic fighting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the severity of college student's mental health has increased, with depression being the most prominent. This study's primary purpose was to explore (1) whether the perceived stress of COVID-19 was associated with depression through sequential mediation of mindfulness and dysexecutive function and also (2) the temporal association among mindfulness, dysexecutive function and depression. Methods: We performed two studies to evaluate dysexecutive function as a mechanism through which mindfulness impacts depression under the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic. Study 1 used a sequential mediation model to test the mediating role of mindfulness and dysexecutive function between the perceived stress of COVID-19 and depression based on 1,665 emerging adults. Study 2 used a random-effect, cross-lagged panel model (RE-CLPM) to test the directionality among mindfulness, dysexecutive function, and depression based on 370 emerging adults. Results: The cross-sectional study showed that perceived stress of COVID-19 was positively associated with depression through the sequential mediation of mindfulness and dysexecutive function (effect: 0.08, 95%CI = [0.07, 0.10]), also through the mediation of mindfulness (effect: 0.05, 95%CI = [0.03, 0.06]) and dysexecutive function (effect: 0.08, 95%CI = [0.06, 0.10]) separately. The RE-CLPM study indicated that dysexecutive function mediates the reciprocal relation between mindfulness and depression at the within-person level. Conclusion: These results suggest that dysexecutive function is an intermediate psychological mechanism that exacerbates depression under pandemic-related stress. Mindfulness can predict dysexecutive function and subsequently improve depression. As depression under pandemic-related stress can weaken the mindful state, long-term mindfulness practices are needed to maintain mental health during COVID-19. Dysexecutive function is a potential cognitive risk factor of depression under pandemic stress using cross-sectional data. The random effect cross-lagged panel model (RE-CLPM) demonstrated temporal association among mindfulness, dysexecutive functions, and depression. Long-term mindfulness practices are needed to maintain mental health under COVID-19 stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]