The Covid-19 Crisis: Specificity Of Experiences Among People With Chronic Illnesses

The current study focuses on chronically ill people as one of the vulnerable groups in the society. The aim is to outline specifics in their perceptions, reactions and attitudes in the context of the crisis caused by COVID-19. An online survey among 610 participants (chronic suffers N=301) was employed. Inventories were used to measure anxiety, resilience, coping strategies, expectations, perceived stress and social support. Results indicate that chronically ill people were significantly more pessimistic, they perceive less social support and use specific ways to cope with stress. The findings have important implications for both theory and social policy. This research is part of project „Socio-psychological Effects of the Crisis caused by COVID-19: Perceived Stress and Dynamics of Experiences“, Contract No KP-06-DK2/5 supported by “Funding of fundamental research projects on public challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic – 2020” of Bulgarian National Science Fund, Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Bulgaria. https://www.ceeol.com/search/book-detail?id=1180222 peerReviewed publishedVersion