Racial Disparities in Psychological Well-Being During COVID-19
Author Information
Author(s): Elliott Meghan, Charles Susan, Silver Roxane Cohen, Holman E Alison
Primary Institution: University of California Irvine
Hypothesis
How did self-reported anger and depressive and anxiety symptoms change over time during the COVID-19 pandemic across different age and racial groups?
Conclusion
Younger and non-white individuals experienced higher levels of emotional distress during the COVID-19 pandemic, while older white adults showed stable anger levels over time.
Supporting Evidence
- Younger age and non-white status were related to higher levels of emotional distress.
- Depressive symptoms peaked at wave 2 for most age groups and declined thereafter.
- Anxiety symptoms were highest at wave 1 and declined for most participants.
- Anger symptoms peaked at wave 2 for all age groups, but older white adults' anger levels remained stable.
Takeaway
This study found that younger people and those who are not white felt more sad and anxious during COVID-19, while older white people felt angry and that didn't change much.
Methodology
The study used multi-level models to analyze changes in self-reported anger, depressive, and anxiety symptoms over four surveys conducted between March 2020 and June 2022.
Participant Demographics
Adults aged 18 to 97 years, with a national representative sample including various racial groups.
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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