“Will my Young Adult Years be Spent Socially Distancing?”: A Qualitative Exploration of UK Adolescents’ Lockdown Experiences during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background and Aims: For older adolescents, the COVID-19 pandemic and associated UK restrictions arrived during a critical period in the transition to adulthood. Early research exploring impact of the pandemic paints a picture of worsened adolescent wellbeing and mental health. We explore the subjective experiences of 16- to 19-year-olds during the first UK lockdown, with an emphasis on wellbeing and coping, in order to complement emergent quantitative evidence and inform strategies and provision for support. Methods: In May 2020, we invited UK-based 16- to 19-year-olds to share their experiences of the initial lockdown for ‘[project name redacted for blinded peer review]’. 109 participants took part, submitting anonymous written accounts via an online portal. We used inductive reflexive thematic analysis to develop rich experiential themes.Findings: We constructed seven main themes: heightened emotionality; feelings of loss, change, and uncertainty; recognising the value of self-care; efforts to think positively; opportunities for relief, growth, and development; the importance of togetherness; and frustration with government and media. Implications: Findings highlight the multifaceted nature of adolescents’ lockdown experiences, and offer insight into emotional impact and new concerns as well as the value placed on self-care and staying connected. We offer directions for supporting adolescents as pandemic consequences continue.

Happier during lockdown: a descriptive analysis of self-reported wellbeing in 17,000 UK school students during Covid-19 lockdown

“…This study provides insight into individual and environmental factors that may support CYP to thrive in the context of school disruption and adversity. First, considering educational differences, there were increased opportunities during lockdown for flexible and tailored teaching that encouraged different styles of learning and student autonomy over schedule and schoolwork [12,14,15,18]. For those in school, smaller class sizes and more focused attention from teachers might have had a positive impact to wellbeing, whilst later wake times [32,39] and more freedom during the school day [15,18] might have benefitted students at home.…”

“…For those in school, smaller class sizes and more focused attention from teachers might have had a positive impact to wellbeing, whilst later wake times [32,39] and more freedom during the school day [15,18] might have benefitted students at home. For some, there was more focus on sport, play, and the creative arts [12,14,15], which may have contributed to wellbeing, although it is likely that this was more accessible for only a minority of students. For certain students, there may also have been fewer 'typical school day' distractions (e.g.…”

“…Second, interpersonal relationships during the pandemic were altered. Some CYP experienced improvements in relationships with family and friends [9,[14][15][16], often facilitated by social media and other digital platforms [8,12,16,42]. CYP who were in school during this time may have had the opportunity to make new friendships, whilst others experienced a respite from negative relationships [15,18,19].…”

“…In addition to quantifying improvements in mental health and wellbeing, it is important to better understand some of the reasons behind these improvements. A number of qualitative studies conducted in the UK, United States, Ireland, and Portugal have explored CYP's experiences of the pandemic between May and October 2020, during which time there was significant variation in Covid-related public health measures and restrictions [12][13][14][15]. Whilst most of the narratives in these studies were primarily centred around negative impacts (e.g.…”

“…strengthened family bonds [15,16], avoiding unwanted interactions at school [15]), and having more autonomy over their schedule and activities (e.g. more time to pursue hobbies [12,14,15]). Stallard and colleagues [17] specifically aimed to explore positive changes related to the pandemic.…”