Impact of Easing COVID-19 Restrictions on Fear of COVID-19 and Social Support Among Chinese Students: A Longitudinal Analysis

Yang Zhao,1 Ruizhe Wang,2 Hebin Li,3 Chong Chen,4 Bowen Zhou,5 Xinying Weng,3 Yidi Hua,6 Yaqi Jia,7 Yajun Wu,8 Ying Li9 1Faculty of Law, Qingdao University, Qingdao, People’s Republic of China; 2HeXie Management Research Center, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Social and Behavioural Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 4CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Social Work, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 6School of Humanities and Social Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, People’s Republic of China; 7Entrepreneurs College, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of China; 8Department of Applied Psychology, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 9School of Urban Governance and Public Affairs, Suzhou City University, Suzhou, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Ying Li, Email yingli.szcityu@gmail.comIntroduction: This longitudinal study aims to investigate the relationship between fear of COVID-19, support-seeking behaviors, and perceived social support among Chinese college students during two distinct periods of the COVID-19 pandemic: the period of strict control (time 1) and the period following a relaxation of restrictions (time 2).Methods: A total of 408 Chinese college students participated in this study. Data collection included demographic information, measures of fear of COVID-19, support-seeking behaviors, and perceived social support.Results: Fear of COVID-19 at time 1 showed a significant positive association with fear of COVID-19 at time 2. The relationship between support-seeking behavior at time 1 and fear of COVID-19 at time 2 was significantly mediated through a chain mediation effect of support-seeking behavior at time 1 and perceived social support at time 2.Discussion: This study contributes to the growing body of evidence on the psychological impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and underscores the significance of social support in mitigating fear of COVID-19. It calls for a re-evaluation of public health policies considering their potential psychological effects and introduces new opportunities for developing psychosocial interventions.Keywords: fear of COVID-19, social support, Chinese students, COVID-19 policy, longitudinal study