New Zealand's COVID-19 lockdown in March and April 2020 was among the world's most stringent. Similar to other countries, New Zealand's lockdown occurred amidst pervasive health and economic uncertainties. However, New Zealanders experienced comparatively less psychological distress. To test theories of pandemic distress mitigation, we use national longitudinal responses with pre-COVID-19 baselines and systematically quantify psychological distress trajectories within the same individuals during the lockdown (pre-COVID-19 = 2018/2019; stringent-lockdown = March/April 2020; N = 940). Most distress indicators were minimally elevated. However, there was a three-fold increase in feelings of worthlessness. Neither satisfaction with the government, nor business-satisfaction, nor a sense of neighbourhood community were effective distress defences. Perceived social-belonging and health-satisfaction mitigated feelings of worthlessness. A silver lining was a relief from feelings of effort, which social-belonging fostered. That social-belonging and health satisfaction could quell serious distress among those low in government confidence, low in business satisfaction, and low neighbourhood community proves that distress mitigation is possible without shifting a population's general political, economic, and civic attitudes. Protection of income and containment of infectious disease threat reduces mental health burdens. Though feelings of worthlessness surge during lockdown, such feelings attenuate from interpersonal belonging with people one already knows.
Research indicates COVID-19 lockdowns elevated psychological distress. Here, we leverage national panel data before and during New Zealand’s COVID-19 lockdown to clarify distress buffers (2018/2020, N = 940). To distinguish lockdown-related distress from natural disasters, we investigate distress dynamics following the Christchurch earthquakes (2011, N = 6,806). During lockdown, there were small increases in hopelessness, restlessness, and nervousness, and substantial increases in worthlessness. A sense of neighbourhood community became decoupled from this distress, which high levels of social belonging and health satisfaction did not prevent. A silver lining was a relief from feelings of effort fostered by social belonging. By contrast, the Christchurch earthquakes increased all distress indicators and distress buffers performed consistently. We infer that losses of employment and social routines during New Zealand’s lockdown, in a setting of government income and health protections, precipitated bittersweet mental health dynamics. That certain pandemic mental health burdens are avoidable has applied interest.
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