Doomscrolling: Prospective associations between daily COVID news exposure, internalizing symptoms, and substance use among sexual and gender minority individuals assigned female at birth.

Abstract

Cross-sectional studies have demonstrated associations between COVID news exposure, anxiety, and depression. However, longitudinal research examining the directionality of these associations is extremely limited. Further, most studies have focused on the general population and neglected sexual and gender minority individuals (SGM), a population disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. To address these limitations, the current study utilized data from a 30-day diary study of SGM assigned female at birth (N = 429). We examined concurrent and prospective associations between COVID news exposure, depressed and anxious affect, COVID distress, substance use, and motives for use. Further, we examined associations between cumulative COVID news exposure across the diary period and prospective changes in anxiety, depression, and COVID distress. When participants were exposed to more COVID news, they experienced more depressed and anxious affect, more COVID distress, less positive affect, and were more likely to use alcohol and cannabis to cope. Further, when participants were exposed to more COVID news, they experienced subsequent increases in depressed affect, decreases in positive affect, and increases in the likelihood of using cannabis to cope. Findings also provided evidence of bidirectional prospective associations between COVID news exposure and COVID distress and of a cumulative impact of COVID news exposure on anxiety, depression, and COVID distress. Findings suggest that individuals should balance the need to remain informed about the pandemic and their own mental health when considering how much COVID news to consume.

Generation COVID: Young adult substance use

“…Lastly, though not assessing pre-pandemic change, a daily diary study of sexual/gender minority young adults found that COVID news exposure was unrelated to daily alcohol and marijuana use but did predict higher coping motives for both substances. In addition, participants with greater news exposure drank less but had higher coping motives for drinking [ 38 ]. Although more research is needed, initial studies point to complexity in understanding intersecting pandemic and marginalization experiences as impacting young adult substance use.…”

Are Cisgender Women and Transgender and Nonbinary People Drinking More During the COVID-19 Pandemic? It Depends.

“…Four studies included findings specific to cisgender SMW. 127 , 128 , 132 , 133 More SMW than any other group reported self-perceived increases in alcohol use since the start of the pandemic (39% vs. 33% of sexual minority men and 24.5% of cisgender heterosexual women). 133 Two of the studies used the same sample but reported on different time points in recruitment (earlier in recruitment 132 and after all participants had been recruited 127 ).…”

“…Seven studies documented how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted TNB people’s drinking. 101 , 115 , 127 – 131 These studies included five cross-sectional and two prospective analyses, primarily began data collection in early pandemic, and all had trans-specific sample sizes of 200 or less. Within the literature that examined the drinking behaviors and trajectories of TNB people following the onset of COVID-19, the referent group to which TNB people were compared varied across studies.…”

“… 128 , 130 , 131 In other studies, TNB people were aggregated and compared against cisgender women. 115 , 127 , 129 One study included solely TNB people and evaluated their current behaviors against their retrospectively reported pre-pandemic behaviors. 101 …”

“…Comparisons between TNB people and cisgender women, which were assessed at a variety of pandemic time points, typically found no significant differences between these groups in terms of alcohol use frequency (e.g., number of drinks consumed in a given day), alcohol use changes (e.g., self-reported drinking frequency before and during the pandemic), and likelihood of drinking to cope. 115 , 127 , 129 For the literature comparing TNB populations to cisgender or cisgender/heterosexual peers more generally, TNB people and cisgender/heterosexual peers had comparable rates of increased drinking during the pandemic (TNB: 10.5%; cisgender/heterosexual: 13%) and were equally likely to exhibit problem drinking (based on PROMIS scores). 131 …”