What is associated with someone having greater resilience during the COVID-19 lockdown?
By Madison Hanscom, PhD
Researchers collected data from over a thousand adults in the U.S. to get a sense of what factors were associated with an individual having greater psychological resilience during the first few weeks of the COVID-19 lockdown (Kilgore, Taylor, Cloonan, & Dailey, 2020). They defined resilience as the ability to withstand setbacks, adapt positively, and bounce back from adversity. There are a great deal of factors related to resiliency.
The researchers found the following factors to be significantly associated with greater resilience during the COVID-19 lockdown:
• More days a week spent outside in the sunshine (at least 10 mins)
• More minutes of daily exercise
• Greater perceived family support
• Greater perceived social support from friends
• More hours of sleep
• Perceived care from a close significant other
• A greater frequency of prayer
There are important lessons we are learning from new research during the COVID-19 pandemic that can help us to build healthier and happier workers. Leaders can help employees by checking in about personal resources like those listed above (e.g., sleep, spending time with loved ones, exercise) as well as by supporting employees at work (see our other blog on resiliency).
A safe workplace means employees who are psychologically and physically healthy. At Propulo Consulting, our focus has always been on safe production. Please visit our website for the latest insights and research into leadership effectiveness during COVID-19.
