Descriptive statistics (main study).

ps1 –Pretraumatic Stress (Wave 1), d1 –Depressive Symptoms (Wave 1), gad1 –Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Wave 1), ss1 –Social Support (Wave 1), pb1 –Prosocial Behavior (Wave 1), pr 1 –Perceived Risk of COVID-19 (Wave 1), pp 1– Perceived Positive Sides of Pandemic (Wave 1), ps2 –Pretraumatic Stress (Wave 2), d2 –Depressive Symptoms (Wave 2), gad2 –Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Wave 2), ss–Social Support (Wave 2), pb–Prosocial Behavior (Wave 2), pr2 –Perceived Risk of COVID-19 (Wave 2), ps3 –Pretraumatic Stress (Wave 3), d3 –Depressive Symptoms (Wave 3), gad3 –Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Wave 3), ss3 –Social Support (Wave 3), pb3 –Prosocial Behavior (Wave 3), pr3 –Perceived Risk of COVID-19 (Wave 3). (DOCX)</p

Sociodemographic characteristics (main study).

BackgroundPretraumatic stress has the same symptoms as post-traumatic stress but instead pertains to anticipated threats. There is evidence that pretraumatic stress occurs among soldiers and pregnant people.ObjectiveWe analyzed correlates of pretraumatic stress concerning the threat of COVID-19 infection.MethodOur pilot study was cross-sectional (N = 74); our main study was longitudinal and consisted of three waves (N = 1067, N = 894, and N = 752 for Waves 1, 2, and 3, respectively). Our pilot study used correlation and multiple linear regression. Our main study used quadratic regression and a random intercept cross-lagged panel model.ResultsThe pilot study found that pretraumatic stress was positively correlated with agreeableness (r = .24, p p p p ConclusionMental health professionals should take into account pretraumatic stress, not only as a possible consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak but more generally as a risk in situations that are new, difficult, and challenging for people.</div

Descriptive statistics (pilot study).

*p (DOCX)</p

Correlates of pretraumatic stress.

*p (DOCX)</p

Pretraumatic stress and perceived positive aspects of the pandemic.

Pretraumatic stress and perceived positive aspects of the pandemic.</p

Pretraumatic stress and prosocial behavior: Random intercept cross-lagged panel model.

The fit measures were acceptable (based on the parameters from [98]): chi2 = 7.411 (df = 1), CFI = .99, TLI = .96, and RMSEA = .08 (CI 95%: .03; .13).</p

Pretraumatic stress as a predictor of perceived positive aspects of the pandemic: Linear and curvilinear regression.

Pretraumatic stress as a predictor of perceived positive aspects of the pandemic: Linear and curvilinear regression.</p

Received social support and pretraumatic stress: Random intercept cross-lagged panel model.

The fit measures were very good (based on the parameters from [98]): chi2 = 1.599 (df = 1), CFI = 0.99, TLI = .99, and RMSEA = .02 (95% CI: 0.00–0.08). As can be seen, social support received did not predict pretraumatic stress across waves.</p

Predictors of pretraumatic stress: Multiple regression (pilot study).

Predictors of pretraumatic stress: Multiple regression (pilot study).</p

Correlates of pretraumatic stress (pilot study), controlling for social desirability.

*p (DOCX)</p