Gene-by-Crisis Interaction for Optimism and Meaning in Life: The Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and the restrictions to reduce the spread of the virus has had a large impact on daily life. We investigated the individual differences in the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and first lockdown on optimism and meaning in life in a sample from the Netherlands Twin Register. Participants completed surveys before (N = 9964, Mean age: 48.2, SD = 14.4) and during the first months of the pandemic (i.e. April–May 2020, N = 17,464, Mean age: 44.6 SD = 14.8), with a subsample completing both surveys (N = 6461, Mean age T1: 48.8, SD = 14.5). We applied genetic covariance structure models to twin data to investigate changes in the genetic architecture of the outcome traits due to the pandemic and the interaction of genes with the environmental exposure. Although 56% and 35% of the sample was negatively affected by the pandemic in their optimism and meaning in life, many participants were stable (32% and 43%) or even showed increased optimism and meaning in life (11% and 22%). Subgroups, specifically women, higher educated people, and people with poorer health, experienced larger negative effects. During the first months of the pandemic, slightly lower heritability estimates for optimism and meaning in life (respectively 20% and 25%) were obtained compared to pre-pandemic (respectively 26% and 32%), although confidence intervals overlap. The lower than unity genetic correlations across time (.75 and .63) suggest gene-environment interactions, where the expression of genes that influence optimism and meaning in life differs before and during the pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic is a strong exposure that leads to imbalanced effects on the well-being of individuals. Some people decrease in well-being, while others get more optimistic and consider their lives as more meaningful during the pandemic. These differences are partly explained by individual differences in genetic sensitivity to extreme environmental change. More knowledge on the person-specific response to specific environmental variables underlying these individual differences is urgently needed to prevent further inequality.

Increased genetic contribution to wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…However, the Twins Early Development Study on adult twins in Great Britain did show that the first month of lockdown did not result in major changes in the genetic or environmental origins in psychological or attitudinal traits compared to a pre-pandemic timepoint [ 31 ]. A similar observation was made by the Netherlands Twin Register , they did not find a significantly altered heritability for well-being related outcomes before and after the start of the pandemic [ 32 ]. Both these studies support the explanation that the increase in the contribution of genetics that we observe is a consequence of the ongoing pandemic rather than a slow return to a pre-pandemic situation.…”

The Buffer Function of Wealth in Socioemotional Responses to Covid‐19 in Italy

“…Contrary to conventional wisdom, meta-analyses (Aknin et al, 2022;Prati & Mancini, 2021) reported that the overall impact has been small in magnitude but complex and that it has depended on the rigidity of containment measures, the stage of the pandemic, and the direct experience of the disease. Furthermore, the pandemic induced heterogeneous psychological responses as the result of unequal resources and differences in genetic sensitivity to environmental shocks (de Vries et al, 2022). Interestingly, Recchi et al (2020) found an unexpected increase in subjective well-being (measured as the self-assessed frequency with which respondents had feelings of nervousness or relaxation, sadness or happiness, etc.)…”

Maximising the Value of Twin Studies in Health and Behaviour

“…If an environmental exposure comprises a limited number of classes, GxE can be investigated by comparing heritability estimates across different environments. One study looked at optimism and meaning of life before and during the COVID-19 pandemic 52 . A gene-by-crisis interaction model showed slightly lower heritability estimates for these traits during the first months of the pandemic and lower than unity genetic correlations across time (.75 and .63) implying GxE, with different genes influencing optimism and meaning in life before and during the pandemic.…”