Journal Article

Experiences, impacts and mental health functioning during a COVID-19 outbreak and lockdown: Data from a diverse New York City sample of college students

Anthonipillai, Nishanthi J, Brandt, Laura, Espinosa, Adriana, López-Castro, Teresa, Melara, Robert

2021

Overview

In March 2020, New York City (NYC) experienced an outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which resulted in a 78-day mass confinement of all residents other than essential workers. The aims of the current study were to (1) document the breadth of COVID-19 experiences and their impacts on college students of a minority-serving academic institution in NYC; (2) explore associations between patterns of COVID-19 experiences and psychosocial functioning during the prolonged lockdown, and (3) explore sex and racial/ethnic differences in COVID-19-related experiences and mental health correlates. A total of 909 ethnically and racially diverse students completed an online survey in May 2020. Findings highlight significant impediments to multiple areas of students' daily life during this period (i.e., home life, work life, social environment, and emotional and physical health) and a vast majority reported heightened symptoms of depression and generalized anxiety. These life disruptions were significantly related to poorer mental health. Moreover, those who reported the loss of a close friend or loved one from COVID-19 (17%) experienced significantly more psychological distress than counterparts with other types of infection-related histories. Nonetheless, the majority (96%) reported at least one positive experience since the pandemic began. Our findings add to a growing understanding of COVID-19 impacts on psychological health and contribute the important perspective of the North American epicenter of the pandemic during the time frame of this investigation. We discuss how the results may inform best practices to support students' well-being and serve as a benchmark for future studies of US student populations facing COVID-19 and its aftermath.

• Publisher: Public Library of Science,Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subject: Adolescent / Adult / Anxieties / Anxiety / Anxiety - epidemiology / Anxiety - psychology / Anxiety disorders / Biology and Life Sciences / College students / Colleges & universities / Coronaviruses / COVID-19 / COVID-19 - epidemiology / COVID-19 - psychology / COVID-19 diagnostic tests / Cross-Sectional Studies / Demographic aspects / Depression - epidemiology / Depression - psychology / Employment / Epidemics / Ethnicity / Female / Health aspects / Health problems / Health risks / Humans / Living conditions / Male / Medicine and Health Sciences / Mental depression / Mental disorders / Mental Health / Minority & ethnic groups / New York City / Pandemics / Population / Post traumatic stress disorder / Posttraumatic stress disorder / Psychological aspects / Psychological stress / Psychology / Race / SARS-CoV-2 / Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 / Social aspects / Social factors / Social interactions / Social Sciences / Stress, Psychological - epidemiology / Stress, Psychological - psychology / Students / United States / Universities / Viral infections / Women / Young adults