Social distancing measures during COVID-19 and mental health

The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the way we connected socially, with less in-person social interactions than previously. Although there are minimal real-world examples, we do know from the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak that quarantine can affect people’s mental health, at least when compared to those who were never quarantined (Xiang et al., 2020). This study focused on social distancing and the possible effects it may have on people’s mental health, specifically anxiety and depressive symptoms, during May and June 2020 when quarantine was still underway in most regions in the United States. This online study asked participants, who reported socially distancing per CDC guidelines, about their technology use, worry about the virus, and other demographic factors (e.g., gender, living status, relationship to COVID-19, etc.). Results showed that reported adherence to social distancing did not mediate worry about COVID-19 and mental health pathology. However, for individuals who reported following social distancing guidelines, gender did matter, with females reporting higher anxiety and depressive symptoms than males. Relationship to the virus was important only if individuals endorsed being personally diagnosis with the virus, which was correlated with more depressive symptoms. Technology use was correlated with higher anxiety, whereas technology fatigue was correlated with lower anxiety and depressive symptoms. Finally, individuals who lived alone reported higher depressive symptoms than individuals who reported living with others. Implications of the study are that gender, living situation, COVID diagnosis, and technology use may affect mental health pathology, specifically depressive and anxiety symptoms. Further research should focus on ways to mitigate depression and anxiety symptoms for individuals in the aforementioned groups, and what strategies and interventions may be most beneficial, especially during a pandemic where social distancing continues to be recommended.