Stress, Coping, and Mental Health Among Local Government Officials: A Longitudinal Study

This study investigated the mediating role of perceived stress in long-term development of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and emotional distress among local government officials over seven years after the Wenchuan earthquake in China. Moreover, how dysfunctional coping would impact the relationship between perceived stress and PTSS or emotional distress was examined. Data were collected one year (T1) and seven years (T2) after the earthquake. Trauma experience, PTSS, and emotional distress were measured at one year. PTSS and emotional distress were re-assessed at seven years together with perceived stress and dysfunctional coping (i.e., behavioral disengagement, denial, self-distraction, self-blame, substance use, and venting). Mediation analyses were conducted to examine the mediating role of perceived stress. Moderated mediation analyses were performed to test the moderation effect of dysfunctional coping. Perceived stress fully mediated the association of T1 emotional distress with its' T2 scores (indirect effect: B = 0.10, SE = 0.04, β = 0.11, 95% CI [0.02, 0.18]), while did not mediate the association of T1 PTSS with T2 PTSS (indirect effect: B = 0.04, SE = 0.03, β = 0.04, 95% CI [−0.02, 0.10]). Compared to a low frequency use of dysfunctional coping strategies (ps = 0.148–0.326), the detrimental effects of perceived stress on PTSS and emotional distress were stronger at higher levels of dysfunctional coping strategies (ps < 0.001). This study highlights the importance of paying attention to the adverse impacts of perceived stress and dysfunctional coping on long-term mental health outcomes among local government officials after disasters.