The current pandemic can induce such experiences
as fear for one’s life, inability to control the situation, decline
in socio-economic status, unpredictability of the future. These
experiences pose a threat of a large-scale mental
traumatisation of modern society. We present a quasiexperimental research about the role of psychological wellbeing and other personal resources in coping with uncertainty
during the COVID-19 pandemic. 20 female final year students
from St. Petersburg State University (mean age 21,3±1,1
years) took part in this study; the students finished
the academic year and passed their final exams remotely.
The research was carried out in two stages. During the first
stage in January 2018, we assessed students’ personal
resources: psychological well-being, self-organisation
of activities, reflection and emotional intelligence using
(а) C. Ryff’s scale of psychological well-being
in T. D. Shevelenkova and P. P. Fesenko’s adaptation;
(b) the activity self-organisation questionnaire
by E. Y. Mandrikova; (c) the differential reflexivity test
by D. A. Leontiev and E. N. Osin; (d) the questionnaire
of emotional intelligence by D. V. Lyusin. At the second stage
in May 2020, respondents were asked to write an essay
on a topic about their experience during the COVID-19
pandemic and self-isolation. The analysis was carried out
using the methods of inductive content analysis and Fisher’s
φ-test. We described the destructive effect of experiencing
uncertainty that triggers stress and negative emotions, and its positive effect related to the positive
interpretation of personal experience during the pandemic. We identified differences in the experience
of uncertainty and stress symptoms among individuals with different levels of psychological well-being.
Six coping-strategies were described: (1) mental disengagement; (2) use of social support; (3)
suppression of competing activities; (4) positive reinterpretation; (5) planning; (6) positive attitude.