ArticleSocial psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology2021
Depression and loneliness during April 2020 COVID-19 restrictions in the United States, and their associations with frequency of social and sexual connections.
Article in Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 74 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
74 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Social connection interventions and depression in young adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2025Pooled it
- Global prevalence of mental health issues among the general population during the coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Scientific reports · 2021Pooled it
- Effects of Classical Music on Behavioral and Physiological Stress Markers in Socially Isolated Prairie Voles.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2026Article
- Association between the condition of living alone and the presence of depressive symptoms in adults in Peru: an analysis of nationally representative survey data.Journal of preventive medicine and hygiene · 2026Observational
- Beyond words: the association of hugging with loneliness, social isolation, and social withdrawal. Evidence from the general adult population in Germany based on a cross-sectional survey.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Cervical cancer risk and high-risk HPV types distribution in Saudi Arabia: Trends from a national laboratory-based study.Saudi medical journal · 2025Article
- Social media use, online experiences, and loneliness among young adults: A cohort study.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2025Article
- Experience of Racial Discrimination was Associated with Psychological Distress and Worsening Sex Life Among Adult Americans During COVID-19.Journal of sex research · 2025Article
- Protective effects of exercise on responses to combined social and environmental stress in prairie voles.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2025Article
- Article
- Changes in Stress Following Wage Increases for Early Childhood Educators.Early childhood education journal · 2025Article
- Social Vulnerability, COVID-19, Racial Violence, and Depressive Symptoms: a Cross-sectional Study in the Southern United States.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2024Article
- Article
- A Prospective, Longitudinal Comparison of Sexual Distress Across Relationship Status During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Archives of sexual behavior · 2024Article
- Psychological and Physiological Stress and Stressors in Early Childhood Educators: An Observational Pilot Study.Psychology in the schools · 2024Article
- The Prevalence of Depression among the Global Public in the Context of the COVID-19 Epidemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Iranian journal of public health · 2024Review
- A prospective cohort study of presenteeism and increased risk of unemployment among Japanese workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.Journal of occupational health · 2024Article
- "I've been doing this for years": the COVID-19 pandemic and family caregiver isolation and loneliness.Frontiers in aging · 2024Article
- Associations of stigma, loneliness, and treatment self-regulation with HIV medication adherence among individuals with substance use disorder using a mobile health application.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Patterns of depression symptoms in relation to stressors and social behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic among older youth and emerging adults in the United States.PLOS global public health · 2024Article
14 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeTo estimate the prevalence of depression and loneliness during the US COVID-19 response, and examine their associations with frequency of social and sexual connections.
methodsWe conducted an online cross-sectional survey of a nationally representative sample of American adults (n = 1010), aged 18-94, running from April 10-20, 2020. We assessed depressive symptoms (CES-D-10 scale), loneliness (UCLA 3-Item Loneliness scale), and frequency of in-person and remote social connections (4 items, e.g., hugging family member, video chats) and sexual connections (4 items, e.g., partnered sexual activity, dating app use).
resultsOne-third of participants (32%) reported depressive symptoms, and loneliness was high [mean (SD): 4.4 (1.7)]. Those with depressive symptoms were more likely to be women, aged 20-29, unmarried, and low-income. Very frequent in-person connections were generally associated with lower depression and loneliness; frequent remote connections were not.
conclusionsDepression and loneliness were elevated during the early US COVID-19 response. Those who maintained very frequent in-person, but not remote, social and sexual connections had better mental health outcomes. While COVID-19 social restrictions remain necessary, it will be critical to expand mental health services to serve those most at-risk and identify effective ways of maintaining social and sexual connections from a distance.
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