Social support and life-threatening behavior in online psychotherapy patients: a possible “pulling-together effect” during COVID-19

The “pulling-together effect” has been widely studied in the context of large-scale crises, such as wars, natural disasters, epidemics, and pandemics. This study was conducted from November 2020 to June 2021 and suggests a possible association with this effect, as this period may represent one of the most intense phases of the pulling-together effect ever studied in the context of global catastrophes. This study aimed to evaluate the association between life-threatening behavior and satisfaction with social relationships in online psychotherapy patients, which may be related to the pulling-together effect and the COVID-19 pandemic. The clinical sample was composed mostly of females (80%), aged from 21 to 30 years. Patients were selected from the psychotherapy services of five major hospitals in Porto Alegre, a state capital in southern Brazil. Preliminary results indicated that 41 individuals (44%) had some form of life-threatening behavior, and 62 (66%) rated their satisfaction with personal relationships as satisfactory or indifferent. After adjustment for other variables—gender, skin-color, and marital status—satisfaction with social relationships showed a protective effect, reducing life-threatening behavior by 29% (95%CI: 0.59–0.86, p < 0.001). Our results suggest that satisfaction with social relationships was protective against suicidal behavior in the early stages of the pandemic. In this sample, we identified a possible association with the pulling-together effect.