ArticleSocial science & medicine (1982)2021
Changes in social relationships during an initial "stay-at-home" phase of the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal survey study in the U.S.
Article in Social science & medicine (1982), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Loneliness before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review with meta-analysis.The American psychologistPooled it
- Social connection before and after the COVID-19 pandemic: results of the Belgian Health Interview Survey.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Is working from home changing the meaning of work?PloS one · 2026Article
- "I don't feel fully prepared": a qualitative study of recently graduated students' mental health experiences of the transition out of university.Journal of adolescence · 2025Article
- Social Connectedness of Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence by Survey Mode and Respondent Dementia.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2025Article
- How the Covid-19 pandemic affected relationships, connectedness, and suicidality among asexual spectrum adults.Journal of injury & violence research · 2025Article
- Women and household responsibilities under COVID-19 lockdowns: many steps backwards in implementing SDG 5 in South Africa.Frontiers in global women's health · 2025Article
- Lived experiences of COVID-19 disease: a qualitative meta-synthesis.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2024Article
- Pivoting from in-person to phone survey assessment of alcohol and substance use: effects on representativeness in a United States prospective cohort of women living with and without HIV.The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse · 2024Article
- Positive and negative aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic among a diverse sample of US adults: an exploratory mixed-methods analysis of online survey data.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Navigating new normals: the influence of COVID-19 policies on community access and well-being of people with mobility disabilities in everyday life.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- The effects of occupational disruption during COVID-19 lockdowns on health: a cross-sectional study.PeerJ · 2024Article
- Frailty and suicidal ideation among older adults living alone in the community: a moderated mediation model of perceived burdensomeness and positive emotions.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Adjusting to the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States: The impact of disruptions on habits and changes in health behaviors.Journal of health psychology · 2023Article
- Remote Communication and Loneliness During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Cross-Sectional Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Article
- Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the social sphere and lessons for crisis management: a literature review.Natural hazards (Dordrecht, Netherlands) · 2023Review
- A descriptive literature review of early research on COVID-19 and close relationships.Journal of social and personal relationships · 2023Review
- Emotion regulation moderates the association between COVID-19 stress and mental distress: findings on buffering, exacerbation, and gender differences in a cross-sectional study from Norway.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Networks in lockdown: The consequences of COVID-19 for social relationships and feelings of loneliness.Social networks · 2023Article
- Resilience and Wellbeing Strategies for Pandemic Fatigue in Times of Covid-19.International journal of applied positive psychology · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
rationaleSevere acute respiratory syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19, and consequent social distancing directives have been observed to negatively impact social relationships but the impact of these changes on the quality of social relationships at a population level has not been explored.
objectiveTo evaluate changes in social relationships in a U.S. population sample during a time of social distancing.
methodsWe deployed a matched, longitudinal survey design of the National Institutes of Health Adult Social Relationship Scales to assess the social aspects of emotional support, instrumental support, friendship, loneliness, perceived hostility, and perceived rejection from a time without social distancing (February 2018) to a time where social distancing directives were active (May 2020). Changes in social relationships were compared using paired t-tests, and generalized linear regression models were constructed to identify subpopulations experiencing differential changes in each subdomain of social relationships during social distancing.
resultsWithin our sample population, individuals experienced an increased sense of emotional support, instrumental support, and loneliness, and decreased feelings of friendship and perceived hostility during a period of social distancing. Individuals with low self-rated health experienced a decreased sense of emotional support, and females experienced increased feelings of loneliness compared with males.
conclusionsSocial distancing measurably impacts social relationships and may have a disproportionate impact on females and individuals with lower self-rated health. If novel emergent infectious diseases become more commonplace, social interventions may be needed to mitigate the potential adverse impact of social distancing on social relationships.
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