Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41292591›Full record

ArticleGlobal mental health (Cambridge, England)2025

Trusting in times of the COVID-19 crisis: Workplace and government trust and depressive symptoms among healthcare workers.

Djordje Basic, Diana Czepiel, Hans W Hoek, Adriana M Martínez, Clare McCormack, Ezra S Susser, Franco Mascayano, Maria F Moro, Mauro G Carta, Gonzalo Martínez-Alés and 30 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Global mental health (Cambridge, England), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

40 authors.

Djordje BasicDepartment of Clinical, Neuro- and Developmental Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0002-0246-029X
Diana CzepielDepartment of Clinical, Neuro- and Developmental Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0014-4691
Hans W HoekParnassia Psychiatric Institute, Parnassia Groep, The Hague, The Netherlands.
Adriana M MartínezMailman School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
Clare McCormackMailman School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
Ezra S SusserMailman School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7665-4826
Franco MascayanoMailman School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3118-504X
Maria F MoroMailman School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
Mauro G CartaDepartment of Medical Sciences and Public Health, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy.
Gonzalo Martínez-AlésHospital La Paz, Institute for Health Research (IdiPAZ), Madrid, Spain.
Eduardo Fernández-JiménezHospital La Paz, Institute for Health Research (IdiPAZ), Madrid, Spain.
Josleen A I BarathieInstitute for Development, Research, Advocacy, and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Beirut, Lebanon.
Elie G KaramInstitute for Development, Research, Advocacy, and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Beirut, Lebanon.
Daisuke NishiDepartment of Mental Health, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Hiroki AsaokaDepartment of Mental Health, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Olatunde AyindeDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Oye GurejeDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Oyeyemi AfolabiDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Olusegun OlaopaDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Jorge RamírezSchool of Public Health, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile.
Armando BasagoitiaChuquisaca Department, Consultora Salud Global, Chuquisaca, Bolivia.
María T S SotoChuquisaca Department, Universidad San Francisco Xavier de Chuquisaca, Dirección de Investigación Ciencia y Tecnología, Sucre, Bolivia.
Sol Durand-AriasNational Institute of Psychiatry Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz, Mexico City, Mexico.
Jana ŠeblováSecond Faculty of Medicine, Charles University Prague, Prague, Czech Republic.
Dominika SeblovaSecond Faculty of Medicine, Charles University Prague, Prague, Czech Republic.
Andrea TenorioFaculty of Medicine, São Paulo State University, Botucatu, Brazil.
Dinarte BallesterUniversity Hospital, Federal University of Rio Grande, Rio Grande, Brazil.
María S BurroneInstitute of Health Sciences, Universidad de O'Higgins, Rancagua, Chile.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9641-8350
Rubén AlvaradoInterdisciplinary Center for Health Studies (CIESAL), Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Valparaiso, Valparaiso, Chile.
Julian Santaella-TenorioDepartment of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Pontifical Xavierian University, Bogotá, Colombia.
Uta OualiDepartment Psychiatry A, Razi Hospital La Manouba, La Manouba, Tunisia.
Anna IsahakyanNational Institute of Health Named After Academician S. Avdalbekyan, Yerevan, Armenia.
Jutta LindertFaculty of Health and Social Work, University of Applied Sciences Emden/Leer, Emden, Germany.
Jaime C SapagDepartment of Public Health and Family Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
Dorian E RamírezFaculty of Medical Sciences, University of San Carlos of Guatemala, Guatemala City, Guatemala.
Lubna AlnasserKing Abdullah International Medical Research Center, King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Eliut Rivera-SegarraSchool of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, Ponce Research Institute, Ponce Health Sciences University, Ponce, Puerto Rico.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8643-9273
Arin BalalianQuestion Driven Design and Analysis Group, New York, NY, USA.
Roberto MediavillaDepartment of Psychiatry, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
Els van der VenDepartment of Clinical, Neuro- and Developmental Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5103-7186

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Previous research has highlighted the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on healthcare workers' (HCWs) mental health, yet protective factors remain underexplored. Emerging studies emphasize the importance of trust in government and interpersonal relationships in reducing infections and fostering positive vaccine attitudes. This study investigates the relationship between HCWs' trust in the workplace and government and depressive symptoms during the pandemic. The COVID-19 HEalth caRe wOrkErS study surveyed 32,410 HCWs from 22 countries, including clinical and nonclinical staff. Participants completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and ad-hoc questions assessing trust in the workplace and government. Logistic regression and multilevel models examined associations between trust levels and depressive symptoms. High workplace trust (OR = 0.72 [0.68, 0.76]) and government trust (OR = 0.72 [0.69, 0.76]) were linked to lower odds of depressive symptoms, with significant between-country variation. Country-level analyses showed that workplace trust was more protective in more developed countries and under stricter COVID-19 restrictions. Despite cross-country variation, HCWs with higher trust in the workplace and government had ~28% lower odds of experiencing depressive symptoms compared to those with lower trust. Promoting trust may help mitigate the mental health impact of future crises on HCWs.

Indexed as

COVID-19cross-countrydepressionhealthcare workerstrust

Identifiers

PMID41292591
PMCPMC12641296

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.