Desynchronized daily activity rhythms and gender related psychological well-being of Moroccan university students during the quarantine-isolation

Ikram Sabaoui; Said Lotfi; Ilham Zerdani; Mohammed Talbi

doi:10.4103/jehp.jehp_1466_22

Desynchronized daily activity rhythms and gender related psychological well-being of Moroccan university students during the quarantine-isolation

J Educ Health Promot. 2023 May 31:12:170. doi: 10.4103/jehp.jehp_1466_22. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ikram Sabaoui¹, Said Lotfi², Ilham Zerdani³, Mohammed Talbi¹

Affiliations

¹ Observatory of Research in Didactics and University Pedagogy (ORDIPU), Faculty of Sciences Ben M'Scik, Hassan II University, Casablanca 20100, Morocco.
² Multidisciplinary Laboratory in Education Sciences and Training Engineering (LMSEIF). Sport Science Assessment and Physical Activity Didactic, Normal Higher School (ENS-C), Hassan II University of Casablanca, BP 50069, Ghandi, Morocco.
³ Laboratory of Ecology and Environment (LEE), Faculty of Sciences, Hassan II University of Casablanca, BP 50069, Ghandi, Morocco.

Abstract

Background: The disturbance of students' biological and academic rhythms induced by the Coronavirus generated considerable challenges that had an influence on their psychological well-being. This study aims to highlight the daily rhythm desynchronization and examine the mental health of Moroccan students who were impacted, notably females, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods and material: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in May 2020 at ten Moroccan faculties including 312 students with an average age of 22 ± 1.70 years old, processed according to a random sampling. A Daily Activities Biorhythm Questionnaire was used to assess the students' daily activities time use and duration, while the PTSD Symptom Scale, Hamilton Scale, Worry Domains Questionnaire, and Visual Analog Mood State Scale were used to assess their mental health. A statistical analysis used both Chi-square and t test to evaluate the relationship between females and males as two independent groups to the studied variables.

Results: Based on individual gender differences, a significant disruption emerged in the daily time use and duration of activities during home confinement. Besides, females were more likely to experience psychological issues notably anxiety (2.04 ± 0.49), physical tiredness (2.11 ± 0.39), sadness (p <.05), and posttraumatic stress disorder (p <.01). In contrast, there is a strong correlation between males' concern of declining employment (p <.05) and their worry of declining family budgets (2.10 ± 1.39).

Conclusions: As an emerging behavior for a new risk factor, the daily activities rhythm of Moroccan university students have been altered and mental health difficulties have appeared due to the quarantine isolation. This might influence their overall academic performance and psychological balance. In this instance, psychological assistance is highly recommended.

Keywords: Daily activity rhythms; gender; posttraumatic stress disorder; psychological well-being; sleep.