Lifestyle and Mental Health Disruptions During COVID-19

Abstract

COVID-19 has affected daily life in unprecedented ways. Using a longitudinal dataset linking biometric and survey data from several cohorts of young adults before and during the pandemic (N=685), we document large disruptions to physical activity, sleep, time use, and mental health. At the onset of the pandemic, average steps decline from 9,400 to 4,600 steps per day, sleep increases by about 25-30 minutes per night, time spent socializing declines by over half to less than 30 minutes, and screen time more than doubles to over 5 hours per day. The proportion of participants at risk of clinical depression increases to 65%, over twice the rate in the same population prior to the pandemic. Our analyses suggest that disruption to physical activity is a leading risk factor for depression during the pandemic. However, restoration of those habits-either naturally or through policy intervention-has limited impact on restoring mental well-being. * Following the norms of Economics, authorship is alphabetical. All authors contributed to the project equally. We thank Ben Schenck and William Wang for excellent research assistance

Behaviour is the Key in a Pandemic: The Direct and Indirect Effects of COVID-19-Related Variables on Psychological Wellbeing

“…The levels of anxiety, hopelessness, depression, and loneliness exceeded those documented in the existing literature in other contexts (e.g. Giuntella et al, 2021), which may be related to specific features of the South African society. This COVID-19 outbreak is occurring against the backdrop of disease epidemics such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and diabetes (Berkowitz et al, 2018).…”

Depression among health care students in the time of COVID-19: the mediating role of resilience in the hopelessness–depression relationship

“…For the CESD scale, the mean found in the current study (M = 27.9, SD = 12.6) was significantly higher than both the mean reported in a study by Radloff (1977) (range: 7.94-9.25) and the normative data reported for a sample of 18-to 24 year-old students (Crawford et al, 2011; M = 14.08, SD = 10.91). The mean reported in this study, in a sample of young adults during COVID-19, was also significantly higher than the mean reported in young adults during COVID-19, in the United States (Giuntella et al, 2020; M = 14.59, SD = 9.64).…”

COVID-19 mitigation policies and psychological distress in young adults

“…Both job loss and food insecurity are associated with poor mental health in young adults ( Nagataet al, 2019 ), ( Bartelink et al, 2020 ), suggesting that exposure to economic precarity might account for at least part of the disproportionate increase in psychological distress in the young adult population during the pandemic. Notwithstanding, research on college students also shows a take-off in mental health difficulties during the pandemic ( Hoyt et al, 2021 ), ( Giuntella et al, 2021 ). This would imply that a range of other factors – including pandemic-induced changes in stress, physical activity, sleep patterns, and lifestyle – may be important in accounting for the rise of psychological distress ( Giuntella et al, 2021 ), ( Birditt et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Notwithstanding, research on college students also shows a take-off in mental health difficulties during the pandemic ( Hoyt et al, 2021 ), ( Giuntella et al, 2021 ). This would imply that a range of other factors – including pandemic-induced changes in stress, physical activity, sleep patterns, and lifestyle – may be important in accounting for the rise of psychological distress ( Giuntella et al, 2021 ), ( Birditt et al, 2021 ). Although young adults were at low risk from COVID-19 disease, mitigation policies aimed toward reducing spread of the disease, such as “stay at home” orders, school closures, and social distancing requirements, have had disproportionate impacts on younger people.…”