ORCID Profile
0000-0001-6002-6817
Current Organisation
University of Sussex
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Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 30-06-2020
Abstract: COVID-19 has led to an unprecedented disruption of normal social relationships and activities, which are so important during the teen years and young adulthood, and to education and economic activity worldwide. The impact of this on young people’s mental health and future prospects may affect their need for support and services, and the speed of the nation’s social recovery afterwards. This study focused on the unique challenges facing young people at different points during adolescent development, which spans from the onset of puberty until the mid-twenties. Although this is an immensely challenging time and there is a potential risk for long term trauma, adolescence can be a period of opportunity, where the teenagers’ brain enjoys greater capacity for change. Hence, the focus on young people is key for designing age-specific interventions and public policies, which can offer new strategies for instilling resilience, emotional regulation, and self-control. In fact, adolescents might be assisted to not only cope, but excel, in spite of the challenges imposed by this pandemic. Our work will feed into the larger societal response that utilizes the discoveries about adolescence in the way we raise, teach, and treat young people during this time of crisis. Wave 1 data has already been collected from 2,002 young people aged 13-24, measuring their mental health (anxiety, depression, trauma), family functioning, social networks, and resilience, and social risk-taking at the time of the pandemic. Here we present a preliminary report of our findings, (Report 1). Data collected 21/4/20- 29/4/20 - a month after the lockdown started).
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 27-01-2021
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0246339
Abstract: The over-purchasing and hoarding of necessities is a common response to crises, especially in developed economies where there is normally an expectation of plentiful supply. This behaviour was observed internationally during the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the absence of actual scarcity, this behaviour can be described as ‘panic buying’ and can lead to temporary shortages. However, there have been few psychological studies of this phenomenon. Here we propose a psychological model of over-purchasing informed by animal foraging theory and make predictions about variables that predict over-purchasing by either exacerbating or mitigating the anticipation of future scarcity. These variables include additional scarcity cues (e.g. loss of income), distress (e.g. depression), psychological factors that draw attention to these cues (e.g. neuroticism) or to reassuring messages (eg. analytical reasoning) or which facilitate over-purchasing (e.g. income). We tested our model in parallel nationally representative internet surveys of the adult general population conducted in the United Kingdom (UK: N = 2025) and the Republic of Ireland (RoI: N = 1041) 52 and 31 days after the first confirmed cases of COVID-19 were detected in the UK and RoI, respectively. About three quarters of participants reported minimal over-purchasing. There was more over-purchasing in RoI vs UK and in urban vs rural areas. When over-purchasing occurred, in both countries it was observed across a wide range of product categories and was accounted for by a single latent factor. It was positively predicted by household income, the presence of children at home, psychological distress (depression, death anxiety), threat sensitivity (right wing authoritarianism) and mistrust of others (paranoia). Analytic reasoning ability had an inhibitory effect. Predictor variables accounted for 36% and 34% of the variance in over-purchasing in the UK and RoI respectively. With some caveats, the data supported our model and points to strategies to mitigate over-purchasing in future crises.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 11-06-2020
Abstract: The C19PRC Study aims to assess the psychological, social, and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK, Republic of Ireland, and Spain. This paper describes the the first two waves of the UK survey (the ‘parent’ strand of the Consortium) during March-April 2020. A longitudinal, internet panel survey assessed: (1) COVID-19 related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours (2) the occurrence of common mental health disorders (e.g. anxiety, depression) as well as the role of (3) psychological factors (e.g. personality, locus of control, resilience) and (4) social and political attitudes (e.g. authoritarianism, social dominance), in influencing the public’s response to the pandemic. Quota s ling was used to recruit a nationally representative (in terms of age, sex, and household income) s le of adults (N=2025), 1406 of whom were followed-up one month later (69.4% retention rate). The baseline s le was representative of the UK population in terms of economic activity, ethnicity, and household composition. Attrition was predicted by key socio-demographic characteristics, and an inverse probability weighting procedure was employed to ensure the follow-up s le was representative of the baseline s le. C19PRC Study data has strong generalisability to facilitate and stimulate interdisciplinary research on important public health questions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 21-11-2020
Abstract: Objectives: The COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study aims to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the adult population in multiple countries. This paper describes the execution of the third wave of the UK survey (the ‘parent’ strand of the Consortium) during July-August 2020. Methods: Adults (N=2025) who previously participated in the baseline and/or the first follow-up surveys were reinvited to participate in this survey, which assessed: (1) COVID-19 related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours (2) the occurrence of common mental health disorders as well as the role of (3) psychological factors and (4) social and political attitudes, in influencing the public’s response to the pandemic. Weights were calculated using a survey raking algorithm to ensure that the cross-sectional s le is nationally representative in terms of gender, age, household income, household composition, and urbanicity. Results: 1166 adults (57.6% of baseline participants) were successfully recontacted and provided full interviews at Wave 3. As expected, the raking procedure successfully re-balanced the cross-sectional s le to within 1% of population estimates across the selected socio-demographic characteristics. Conclusion: This paper outlines the growing strength of the C19PRC Study data to facilitate and stimulate interdisciplinary research addressing important public health questions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 22-09-2020
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented changes in the day-to-day behaviours of populations globally, especially in areas where social distancing rules have been mandated. Understanding the cognitive mechanisms underlying (un)successful behaviour change around social distancing is crucial to inform public health policy for both the current and future crises.In this study, we utilise tasks probing delay discounting (the preference for immediate versus delayed rewards) and patch foraging (evaluating the trade-off between exploiting a known resource and exploring an unknown one) to investigate cognitive predictors of social distancing and mental health symptoms. Participants (N=442) were recruited from a large UK cohort (N=2025) nationally representative in age, gender and income.Greater sensitivity to reward magnitude during delay discounting predicted lower adherence to social distancing measures and higher levels of mood and anxiety symptoms. In addition, under-valuing recently s led information during foraging separately predicted greater violation of social distancing. Analyses examining cognitive factors underpinning social distancing behaviour across two time points (early and late phases of the pandemic) additionally revealed that greater sensitivity to magnitude of rewards on offer during delay discounting predicted a greater decline in psychological inclination to maintain social distancing. Moreover, under-valuing recent information during foraging separately predicted less motivation to engage in social distancing during the established phase of the pandemic. The findings suggest that those who typically regulate their mood through behaviours that bring about immediate reward are also those who struggle to maintain social distancing. Further, those who adapt more quickly to new information showed better ability to change their behaviour in response to public health measures. These findings highlight the need for public health initiatives that bolster sustained confidence in planning around social distancing by emphasising the immediate rewards to self as well as longer term benefits.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 10-06-2020
Abstract: Successful delivery of a COVID-19 vaccine may be undermined if populations are not receptive to inoculation as a primary public health strategy for combatting the virus. We gathered nationally representative data from the general adult populations of Ireland (N=1,041) and the United Kingdom (UK N=2,025) to determine rates of hesitancy and resistance to a future COVID-19 vaccine and to identify and psychologically profile vaccine hesitant/resistant in iduals in a way that might aid future public health messaging. Vaccine hesitancy was evident for 26% and 25% of Irish and UK s les, respectively, while vaccine resistance was evident for 9% and 6%, respectively. Vaccine hesitant/resistant respondents in Ireland and the UK differed in relation to a number of sociodemographic, political, and health-related variables, but were similar across a broad array of psychological constructs. In both populations, those who were resistant to a COVID-19 vaccine were less likely to obtain information about the pandemic from traditional and authoritative sources and had similar levels of mistrust in these sources. The current findings may help public health officials to more effectively target vaccine hesitant and resistant in iduals, develop effective communication strategies that take into account their specific psychological dispositions, and leverage dissemination channels that can successfully reach these in iduals.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 13-08-2022
Abstract: Although the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the psychological wellbeing of some people, there is evidence that many have been much less affected. The Ecological Model of Resilience (EMR) may explain why some in iduals are not resilient whilst others are. In this study we test the EMR in a comparison of UK survey data collected from the Covid-19 Psychological Research Consortium longitudinal study of a representative s le of the UK adult population and data from an Italian arm of the study. We first compare data from the third wave (W3) of the UK arm of the study, collected in July/August 2020, with data from an equivalent s le (N = 1034) and stage of the pandemic in Italy in July 2020. Next, using UK longitudinal data collected from C19PRC Waves 1, 3 and 5, collected between March 2020 and April 2021 we identify the proportion of people who were resilient. Finally, we examine which factors, drawn from the ecological model, predict resilient and non-resilient outcomes.We find that the 72% of the UK s le was resilient, in line with the Italian study. In the cross-sectional logistic regression model, age and self-esteem were significantly associated with resilience whilst death anxiety thoughts, neuroticism, loneliness, and PTSD symptoms related to COVID-19 were significantly associated with Non-Resilient outcomes.In the longitudinal UK analysis, at Wave 5, 80% of the s le was Resilient. Service use, belonging to wider neighbourhood, self-rated health, self-esteem, openness, and externally generated death anxiety were associated with Resilient outcomes. In contrast, PTSD symptoms and loneliness were associated with Non-Resilient outcomes.The EMR effectively explained the results. There were some variables which are amenable to intervention which could increase resilience in the face of similar future challenges.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 20-04-2020
Abstract: Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the greatest global health threats facing humanity in recent memory. This study aimed to explore influences on hygienic practices, a set of key transmission behaviours, in relation to the Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behaviour (COM-B) model of behaviour change (Michie et al., 2011).Design Data from the first wave of a longitudinal survey study was used, launched in the early stages of the UK COVID-19 pandemic.Methods Participants were 2025 adults aged 18 and older, representative of the UK population, recruited by a survey company from a panel of research participants. Participants self-reported motivation, capability and opportunity to enact hygienic practices during the COVID-19 outbreak.ResultsUsing regression models, we found that all three COM-B components significantly predicted good hygienic practices, with motivation having the greatest influence on behaviour. Breaking this down further, the sub-scales psychological capability, social opportunity and reflective motivation positively influenced behaviour. Reflective motivation was largely driving behaviour, with those highest in reflective motivation scoring 51% more on the measure of hygienic practices compared with those with the lowest scores.ConclusionsOur findings have clear implications for the design of behaviour change interventions to promote hygienic practices. Interventions should focus on increasing and maintaining motivation to act and include elements that promote and maintain social support and knowledge of COVID-19 transmission. Groups in particular need of targeting for interventions to increase hygienic practices are males and those living in cities and suburbs.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 04-01-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41467-020-20226-9
Abstract: Identifying and understanding COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy within distinct populations may aid future public health messaging. Using nationally representative data from the general adult populations of Ireland ( N = 1041) and the United Kingdom (UK N = 2025), we found that vaccine hesitancy/resistance was evident for 35% and 31% of these populations respectively. Vaccine hesitant/resistant respondents in Ireland and the UK differed on a number of sociodemographic and health-related variables but were similar across a broad array of psychological constructs. In both populations, those resistant to a COVID-19 vaccine were less likely to obtain information about the pandemic from traditional and authoritative sources and had similar levels of mistrust in these sources compared to vaccine accepting respondents. Given the geographical proximity and socio-economic similarity of the populations studied, it is not possible to generalize findings to other populations, however, the methodology employed here may be useful to those wishing to understand COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy elsewhere.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 12-05-2020
Abstract: The primary aim of this study was to estimate the rate of face mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic in a representative UK adult population s le and assess its association with demographic, health, and mental health variables. The rate of face mask wearing was 16.7% and was associated with being younger, male, living in an urban environment, having existing health problems, increased perceived risk of COVID-19, depression, traumatic stress, and COVID-19 related anxiety. The number of people prepared to wear face masks needs to increase significantly if the UK government recommends their use.
Publisher: Swansea University
Date: 17-02-2022
Abstract: This paper serves to alert IJPDS readers to the availability of a major new longitudinal survey data resource, the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study, which is being released for secondary use via the Open Science Framework. The C19PRC Study is a rich and detailed dataset that provides a convenient and valuable foundation from which to study the social, political, and health status of European adults during an unprecedented time of change as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit. Here, we provide an overview of the C19PRC Study design, with the purpose of stimulating interest about the study among social scientists and maximising use of this resource.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 18-05-2020
Abstract: Successful delivery of a COVID-19 vaccine may be undermined if populations are not receptive to inoculation as a primary public health strategy for combatting the virus. We gathered nationally representative data from the general adult populations of Ireland (N=1,041) and the United Kingdom (UK N=2,025) to determine rates of hesitancy and resistance to a future COVID-19 vaccine and to identify and psychologically profile vaccine hesitant/resistant in iduals in a way that might aid future public health messaging. Vaccine hesitancy was evident for 26% and 25% of Irish and UK s les, respectively, while vaccine resistance was evident for 9% and 6%, respectively. Vaccine hesitant/resistant respondents in Ireland and the UK differed in relation to a number of sociodemographic, political, and health-related variables, but were similar across a broad array of psychological constructs. In both populations, those who were resistant to a COVID-19 vaccine were less likely to obtain information about the pandemic from traditional and authoritative sources and had similar levels of mistrust in these sources. The current findings may help public health officials to more effectively target vaccine hesitant and resistant in iduals, develop effective communication strategies that take into account their specific psychological dispositions, and leverage dissemination channels that can successfully reach these in iduals.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 23-02-2021
Abstract: Background: The current study argues that population prevalence estimates for mental health disorders, or changes in mean scores over time, may not adequately reflect the heterogeneity in mental health response to the COVID-19 pandemic within the population.Methods: The COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study is a longitudinal, nationally representative, online survey of UK adults. The current study analysed data from its first three waves of data collection: Wave 1 (March 2020, N=2025), Wave 2 (April 2020, N=1406) and Wave 3 (July 2020, N=1166). Anxiety-depression was measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire Anxiety and Depression Scale (a composite measure of the PHQ-9 and GAD-7) and COVID-19 related PTSD with the International Trauma Questionnaire. Changes in mental health outcomes were modelled across the three waves. Latent class growth analysis was used to identify subgroups of in iduals with different trajectories of change in anxiety-depression and COVID-19 PTSD. Latent class membership was regressed on baseline characteristics.Results: Overall prevalence of anxiety-depression remained stable, while COVID-19 PTSD reduced between Waves 2 and 3. Heterogeneity in mental health response was found, and hypothesised classes reflecting (i) stability, (ii) improvement, and (iii) deterioration in mental health were identified. Psychological factors were most likely to differentiate the improving, deteriorating and high-stable classes from the low-stable mental health trajectories. Conclusions: A low-stable profile characterised by little-to-no psychological distress (‘resilient’ class) was the most common trajectory for both anxiety-depression and COVID-19 PTSD. Monitoring these trajectories is necessary moving forward, in particular for the ~30% of in iduals with increasing anxiety-depression levels.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 15-03-2021
Abstract: Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the way many in iduals go about their daily lives. This study attempted to model the complexity of change in lifestyle quality as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and its context within the UK adult population.Methods: Data from the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium Study (Wave 3, July 2020 N=1166) were utilised. A measure of COVID-19-related lifestyle change captured how in iduals’ lifestyle quality had been altered as a consequence of the pandemic. Exploratory factor analysis and latent profile analysis were used to identify distinct lifestyle quality change subgroups, while multinomial logistic regression analysis was employed to describe class membership.Results: Five lifestyle dimensions, reflecting partner relationships, health, family and friend relations, personal and social activities, and work life were identified by the EFA, while seven classes characterised by distinct patterns of change across these dimensions emerged from the LPA: (1) Better overall (3.3%), (2) Worse except partner relations (6.0%), (3) Worse overall (2.5%), (4) Better relationships (9.5%), (5) Better except partner relations (4.3%), (6) No different (67.9%), and (7) Worse partner relations only (6.5%). Predictor variables differentiated membership of classes. Notably, classes 3 and 7 were associated with poorer mental health (COVID-19 related PTSD and suicidal ideation).Conclusions: Four months into the pandemic, most in iduals’ lifestyle quality remained largely unaffected by the crisis. Concerningly however, a substantial minority (15%) experienced worsened lifestyles compared to before the pandemic. In particular, a pronounced deterioration in partner relations seemed to constitute the more severe pandemic-related lifestyle change.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 30-06-2020
Abstract: A brief follow on report (for Report 1, see q4rn/). This report presents data on parents and their children's well being as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic from our adult survey study. In addition to presenting additional data showing a potentially significant increase in anxiety and depression in young people aged 13-24, as a consequence of COVID-19. Data collection for our Adult Study (Wave 2) took place between 22nd April and was ended on Friday, May 1st, here we report headline figures for the impact of Covid-19 on parents and their children. We have described our methods in a separate report (xe2n) and released two reports on our mental health outcomes from wave 1 (b6nq, dvc7).
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 30-04-2020
Abstract: This study aimed to estimate the association between anxiety associated with COVID-19 and somatic symptoms, using data from a large, representative s le (N=2025) of the UK adult population. Results showed that moderate to high levels of anxiety associated with COVID-19 were significantly associated with general somatic symptoms, and in particular with gastrointestinal and fatigue symptoms. This pattern of associations remained significant after controlling for generalised anxiety disorder, pre-existing health problems, age, gender and income. This is the first evidence that anxiety associated with COVID-19 makes a unique contribution to somatisation, above and beyond the effect of generalised anxiety disorder.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 09-05-2020
Abstract: Research has demonstrated that situational factors such as perceived threats to the social order activate latent authoritarianism. The deadly COVID-19 pandemic presents a rare opportunity to test whether existential threat stemming from an indiscriminate virus moderates the relationship between authoritarianism and political attitudes toward the nation and outgroups. Using data from two large nationally representative s les of adults in the United Kingdom (N = 2,025) and Republic of Ireland (N = 1,041) collected during the initial phases of strict lockdown measures in both countries, we find that the associations between right-wing authoritarianism and 1) nationalism and 2) anti- immigrant attitudes are conditional on levels of perceived threat. As anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic increases, so too does the effect of right-wing authoritarianism on those political outcomes. Thus, it appears that existential threats to humanity from the COVID-19 pandemic moderate expressions of authoritarianism in society.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 05-03-2021
Abstract: Objectives: This paper outlines fieldwork procedures for Wave 4 of the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study in the UK during November-December 2020. Methods: Respondents provided data on socio-political attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours, and mental health disorders (anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress). In Phase 1, adults (N=2878) were reinvited to participate. At Phase 2, new recruitment: (i) replenished the longitudinal strand to account for attrition and (ii) overs led from the devolved UK nations to facilitate robust between-country analyses for core study outcomes. Weights were calculated using a survey raking algorithm to ensure the longitudinal panel was representative of the baseline s le characteristics. Results: In Phase 1, 1796 adults were successfully recontacted and provided full interviews at Wave 4 (62.4% retention rate). In Phase 2, 292 new respondents were recruited to replenish the panel, as well as 1779 adults from Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, who were representative of the socio-political composition of the adult populations in these nations. The raking procedure successfully re-balanced the longitudinal panel to within 1% of population estimates for selected socio-demographic characteristics. Conclusion: The C19PRC Study offers a unique opportunity to facilitate and stimulate interdisciplinary research addressing important public health questions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 08-09-2021
Abstract: Shevlin et al. (2021) recently demonstrated heterogeneity in mental health and psychological responses to the COVID-19 pandemic over time from a nationally representative s le of UK adults (March–July 2020). Five subpopulations representing either stability, deterioration or improvement in both anxiety-depression and COVID-19 PTSD were identified. The majority of the s le were characterised by low levels of anxiety-depression (56.6%) and COVID-19 traumatic stress (68.3%) during this early phase of the pandemic but some showed deterioration and some showed mental health benefits. Here we extend these findings using two additional survey waves from the C19PRC Study, thereby modelling mental health trajectories for the UK population within the entire first year of the pandemic.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 17-06-2020
Abstract: Background: Extant research relating to the psychological impact of infectious respiratory disease epidemics andemics suggests that frontline workers are particularly vulnerable.Methods: The current study used data from the first two waves of the United Kingdom (UK) survey of the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study to compare frontline workers with the rest of the UK population on prevalence estimates of depression, anxiety, and PTSD during the first week of ‘lockdown’ (Wave 1) and one month later (Wave 2).Results: Compared to the rest of the population, frontline workers generally, and in idual frontline worker groups, had significantly higher prevalence estimates of depression, anxiety, and PTSD during both wave 1 and wave 2. While prevalence estimates of depression significantly increased among Local & National Government Workers from Wave 1 (15.4%) to Wave 2 (38.5%), no significant improvement or deterioration in mental health status was recorded for any other frontline worker group. Multivariate binary logistic regression analysis showed that, beyond other risk factors, food workers were nearly twice as likely as others to screen positive for anxiety, while all frontline worker groups, other than transport workers, were significantly more likely to screen positive for PTSD (Odds Ratios ranged from 1.74 – 3.43). Finally, while frontline workers, generally, were significantly more likely than the general public to have received mental health advice during the pandemic (26.9% versus 20.3% respectively), this was largely reflective of health and social care workers (37.9%).Conclusions: These findings offer timely and valuable information on the psychological health status of UK’s frontline workforce during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and may aid in preparations for their future psychological and mental health support.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 06-04-2022
Abstract: AbstractObjectives: The COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study was established in March 2020 to monitor the psychological and socio-economic impact of the pandemic in the UK and other countries. This paper describes the protocol for Wave 6 (August-September 2021). Methods: The survey assessed: COVID-19 related experiences experiences of common mental health disorders psychological characteristics and social and political attitudes. Adults who participated in any previous wave (N=3170) were re-invited to participate, and s le replenishment procedures were conducted to help manage attrition. Weights were calculated using a survey raking algorithm to ensure on-going original panel (commencing at baseline) was nationally representative in terms of gender, age, and household income, amongst other factors. Results: 1643 adults who participated in any previous wave were re-interviewed at Wave 6 (51.8% retention rate). Non-participation at Wave 6 was higher amongst women, younger adults, those in employment, those born outside UK, adults living in cities, and those not living alone. Of the adults recruited into the C19PRC study at baseline, 54.3% (N=1100) participated in Wave 6. An additional 415 new respondents entered the panel at this wave, resulting in cross-sectional s le for Wave 6 of 2058 adults. The raking procedure re-balanced the longitudinal panel to within 1.3% of population estimates for selected socio-demographic characteristics. Conclusion: This paper outlines the growing strength of the publicly available C19PRC Study data for COVID-19-related interdisciplinary research.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 18-04-2020
Abstract: BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented global crisis necessitating drastic changes to living conditions, social life, personal freedom and economic activity. No study has yet examined the presence of psychiatric symptoms in the UK population in similar conditions.AimsWe investigated the prevalence of COVID-19 related anxiety, generalised anxiety, depression and trauma symptoms in a representative s le of the UK population during an early phase of the pandemic, and estimated associations with variables likely to influence these symptoms.MethodBetween March 23rd and March 28th 2020, a quota s le of 2025 UK adults 18 years and older, stratified by age, sex and household income, was recruited by online survey company Qualtrics. Participants completed measures of depression (PHQ9), generalised anxiety (GAD7), and trauma symptoms relating to the pandemic (ITQ). Bivariate and multivariate associations were calculated for age, gender, rural vs urban environment, presence of children in the household, income, loss of income, pre-existing health conditions in self and someone close, infection in self and someone close, and perceived risk of infection over the next month.ResultsHigher levels of anxiety, depression and trauma symptoms were reported compared to previous population studies, but not dramatically so. Meeting the criteria for either anxiety or depression, and trauma symptoms was predicted by young age, presence of children in the home, and high estimates of personal risk. Anxiety and depression symptoms were also predicted by low income, loss of income, and pre-existing health conditions in self and other. Specific anxiety about COVID-19 was greater in older participants.Conclusions The UK population, especially older citizens, were largely resilient in the early stages of the pandemic. However, several specific COVID-related variables are associated with psychological distress: particularly having children at home, loss of income because of the pandemic, as well as having a pre-existing health condition, exposure to the virus and high estimates of personal risk. Further similar surveys, particularly of those with children at home, are required as the pandemic progresses.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 09-09-2021
Abstract: Objective: The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) are self-report measures of major depressive disorder and generalised anxiety disorder. The primary aim of this study was to test for differential item functioning (DIF) on the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 items based on age, sex (males and females), and country.Method (or Design): Data from nationally representative surveys in UK, Ireland, Spain, and Italy (combined N = 6, 040) were used to fit confirmatory factor analytic and multiple-indictor multiple-causes models.Results: Spain and Italy had higher latent variable means than the UK and Ireland for both anxiety and depression, but there was no evidence for differential items functioning.Conclusions: The PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores were found to be unidimensional, reliable, and largely free of DIF in data from four large nationally representative s les of the general population in the UK, Ireland, Italy and Spain.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 19-08-2020
Abstract: Over-purchasing and hoarding of necessities is a common response to crises, especially in developed economies where there is normally an expectation of plentiful supply. This behaviour was observed internationally early on in the COVID-19 pandemic. In the absence of actual scarcity, this behaviour can be described as ‘panic buying’ and can lead to temporary shortages. However, there have been few psychological studies of this phenomenon. We propose a psychological model of over-purchasing informed by animal foraging theory and make predictions about variables that predict over-purchasing by either exacerbating or mitigating the anticipation of future scarcity. These variables include additional scarcity cues (e.g. loss of income), distress (e.g. depression), psychological factors that draw attention to these cues (e.g. neuroticism) or to reassuring messages (eg. analytical reasoning) or which facilitate over-purchasing (e.g. income).We tested our model in parallel nationally representative internet surveys of the adult general population conducted in the United Kingdom (UK: N = 2025) and the Republic of Ireland (RoI: N = 1041) 52 and 31 days after the first confirmed cases of COVID-19 were detected in the UK and RoI, respectively.About three quarters of participants reported no or very little over-purchasing. More over-purchasing in RoI may have reflected different government messaging or historical factors. When over-purchasing occurred, it was observed across a wide range of product categories and was accounted for by a single latent factor. It was positively predicted by household income, the presence of children at home, psychological distress (depression, death anxiety), threat sensitivity (right wing authoritarianism) and mistrust of others (paranoia). Analytic reasoning ability had an inhibitory effect. Predictor variables accounted for 36% and 34% of the variance in over-purchasing in the UK and RoI respectively. With some caveats, the data supported our model and point to strategies to mitigate over-purchasing in future crises.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 18-12-2020
Abstract: Conspiracy theories about COVID-19 have proliferated during the global pandemic, and their rapid spread among certain groups inthe population has important implications for policy attitudes (e.g., motivation to engage in social distancing and willingness to vaccinate). Using survey data from two waves of a nationally representative, longitudinal study of life in lockdown in the UK (N = 1,406), we analyze the factors associated with belief in three theories related to COVID-19, namely that it 1) originated in a meat market in Wuhan, China, 2) was developed in a lab in Wuhan, China, and 3) is caused by 5G mobile networks. Using a dual-factor model, we test how cognitive ability and motivations affect susceptibility to misinformation. Our findings suggest that motivational and political dispositions, as well as the sources from which people derive COVID-19 related information, are strongly associated with belief in conspiracy theories about the virus, though these predictors vary among conspiracies. Belief in the Chinese lab conspiracy is associated with right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), social dominance orientation (SDO) and a preference for tabloid newspapers, while belief in the 5G network origin story is associated with social dominance orientation and a tendency to derive information on COVID-19 from social media. Moreover, we find that motivational factors like RWA and SDO have larger effect sizes than COVID-19 related anxiety, a desire for certainty, cognitive reasoning ability, or even general conspiracy ideation (in the case of 5G belief). These findings suggest that efforts to mitigate the potential damage caused by conspiracy theories, for ex le, by increasing education and awareness, may be inadequate because they miss a larger story, namely the role that politically motivated reasoning plays in making in iduals susceptible to misinformation, and the propagation of conspiracies through networks and channels that reinforce these inaccurate worldviews.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 13-04-2020
Abstract: The COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study aims to assess and monitor the psychological and social impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in the general population, using longitudinal surveys and mixed-methods studies in multiple countries. The first strand of the study, an internet-based panel survey, was launched in the UK in March 2020 during the earliest stages of the pandemic in that country (hereafter referred to as C19PRC-UKW1). This paper describes (1) the development, design and content for C19PRC-UKW1, which was informed by the extant evidence base on the psychosocial impact of previous global outbreaks of similar severe acute respiratory syndromes (e.g. SARS, H1N1, MERS) (2) the specific socio-economic and political context of the C19PRC-UKW1 (3) the recruitment of a large s le of UK adults aged 18 years and older (n=2025) via an internet-based panel survey (4) the representativeness of the C19PRC-UKW1 s le compared to the UK adult population in terms of important sociodemographic characteristics (e.g. age, sex, household income, etc.) and (5) future plans for C19PRC Study including follow-up survey waves in the UK, supplementary non-survey based study strands linking from the C19PRC-UKW1 and the roll-out of the study to other countries.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 27-05-2021
Abstract: Background: Two theoretical perspectives have been proffered to explain changes in alcohol use during the pandemic: the ‘affordability-availability’ mechanism (i.e., drinking decreases due to changes in physical availability and/or reduced disposable income) and the ‘psychological-coping’ mechanism (i.e., drinking increases as adults attempt to cope with pandemic-related distress). Methods: We tested these alternative perspectives via longitudinal analyses of the COVID-19 Psychological Consortium (C19PRC) Study data (spanning three timepoint during March to July 2020). Respondents provided data on psychological measures (e.g., anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress, paranoia, extraversion, neuroticism, death anxiety, COVID-19 anxiety, intolerance of uncertainty, resilience), changes in socio-economic circumstances (e.g., income loss, reduced working hours), drinking motives, solitary drinking, and ‘at-risk’ drinking (assessed using a modified version of the AUDIT-C). Structural equation modelling was used to determine (i) whether ‘at-risk’ drinking during the pandemic differed from that recalled before the pandemic, (ii) dimensions of drinking motives and the psychosocial correlates of these dimensions, (iii) if increased alcohol consumption was predicted by drinking motives, solitary drinking, and socio-economic changes. Results: The proportion of adults who recalled engaging in ‘at-risk’ drinking decreased significantly from 35.9% pre-pandemic to 32.0% during the pandemic. Drinking to cope was uniquely predicted by experiences of anxiety and/or depression and low resilience levels. Income loss or reduced working hours were not associated with coping, social enhancement, or conformity drinking motives, nor changes in drinking during lockdown. Conclusions: In the earliest stage of the pandemic, psychological-coping mechanisms may have been a stronger driver to changes in adults’ alcohol use than ‘affordability-availability’ alone.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 28-07-2021
Abstract: Objectives: This paper describes fieldwork procedures for the fifth wave of the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study, conducted during March-April 2021. The C19PRC Study was established in March 2020 to monitor the psychological and socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK and other countries. Methods: The survey wave assessed: COVID-19 related experiences the occurrence of common mental health disorders psychological factors and social and political attitudes – to facilitate statistical analyses to determine how these constructs on influenced the public’s response to the pandemic. Adults who participated in any previous survey wave (N=4949) were re-contacted and invited to participate. Weights were calculated using a survey raking algorithm to ensure that the longitudinal panel was nationally representative in terms of gender, age, and household income, amongst other factors. Results: Overall, 2520 adults participated in this wave. A total of 2377 adults who participated in the previous survey wave (i.e., Wave 4 of the C19PRC Study, conducted November-December 2020) were successfully recontacted and provided full interviews at Wave 5 (61.5% retention rate). Attrition between these two waves was predicted by factors such as younger age, lower household income, having children living in the household, and current or past experiences of treatment for mental health difficulties. Of the adults recruited into the C19PRC study at baseline, 57.4% (N=1162) participated in the fifth wave. The raking procedure successfully re-balanced the longitudinal panel to within 1.5% of population estimates for selected socio-demographic characteristics. Conclusion: This paper outlines the growing strength of the publicly available C19PRC Study data to facilitate and stimulate interdisciplinary research aimed at addressing important public health questions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 10-2021
Abstract: This paper serves to alert IJPDS readers to the availability of a major new longitudinal survey data resource, the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) Study, which is being released for secondary use via the Open Science Framework. The C19PRC Study is a rich and detailed dataset that provides a convenient and valuable foundation from which to study the social, political, and health status of European adults during an unprecedent time of change as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit. Here, we provide an overview of the C19PRC Study design, with the purpose of stimulating interest about the study among social scientists and maximising use of this resource.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 11-04-2014
DOI: 10.1093/SCAN/NSU048
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: United States of America
Location: United States of America
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Location: Mexico
No related grants have been discovered for Liat Levita.