TY - JOUR
T1 - The impact of COVID-19 related adversity on the course of mental health during the pandemic and the role of protective factors
T2 - a longitudinal study among older adults in The Netherlands
AU - Holwerda, Tjalling J.
AU - Jaarsma, Eva
AU - van Zutphen, Elisabeth M.
AU - Beekman, Aartjan T. F.
AU - Pan, Kuan-Yu
AU - van Vliet, Majogé
AU - Stringa, Najada
AU - van den Besselaar, Judith H.
AU - MacNeil-Vroomen, Janet L.
AU - Hoogendijk, Emiel O.
AU - Kok, Almar A. L.
N1 - Funding Information: The Longitudinal Ageing Study Amsterdam (LASA) is largely supported by a grant from The Netherlands Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports, Directorate of Long-Term Care. Publisher Copyright: © 2023, The Author(s).
PY - 2023/7
Y1 - 2023/7
N2 - Purpose: Many studies report about risk factors associated with adverse changes in mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic while few studies report about protective and buffering factors, especially in older adults. We present an observational study to assess protective and buffering factors against COVID-19 related adverse mental health changes in older adults. Methods: 899 older adults (55 +) in the Netherlands were followed from 2018/19 to two pandemic time points (June–October 2020 and March–August 2021). Questionnaires included exposure to pandemic-related adversities (“COVID-19 exposure”), depressive and anxiety symptoms, loneliness, and pre-pandemic functioning. Linear regression analyses estimated main effects of COVID-19 exposure and protective factors on mental health changes; interaction effects were tested to identify buffering factors. Results: Compared to pre-pandemic, anxiety symptoms, depression symptoms and loneliness increased. A higher score on the COVID-19 adversity index was associated with stronger negative mental health changes. Main effects: internet use and high mastery decreased depressive symptoms; a larger network decreased anxiety symptoms; female gender, larger network size and praying decreased loneliness. COVID-19 vaccination buffered against COVID-19 exposure-induced anxiety and loneliness, a partner buffered against COVID-19 exposure induced loneliness. Conclusion: Exposure to COVID-19 adversity had a cumulative negative impact on mental health. Improving coping, finding meaning, stimulating existing religious and spiritual resources, network interventions and stimulating internet use may enable older adults to maintain mental health during events with large societal impact, yet these factors appear protective regardless of exposure to specific adversities. COVID-19 vaccination had a positive effect on mental health.
AB - Purpose: Many studies report about risk factors associated with adverse changes in mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic while few studies report about protective and buffering factors, especially in older adults. We present an observational study to assess protective and buffering factors against COVID-19 related adverse mental health changes in older adults. Methods: 899 older adults (55 +) in the Netherlands were followed from 2018/19 to two pandemic time points (June–October 2020 and March–August 2021). Questionnaires included exposure to pandemic-related adversities (“COVID-19 exposure”), depressive and anxiety symptoms, loneliness, and pre-pandemic functioning. Linear regression analyses estimated main effects of COVID-19 exposure and protective factors on mental health changes; interaction effects were tested to identify buffering factors. Results: Compared to pre-pandemic, anxiety symptoms, depression symptoms and loneliness increased. A higher score on the COVID-19 adversity index was associated with stronger negative mental health changes. Main effects: internet use and high mastery decreased depressive symptoms; a larger network decreased anxiety symptoms; female gender, larger network size and praying decreased loneliness. COVID-19 vaccination buffered against COVID-19 exposure-induced anxiety and loneliness, a partner buffered against COVID-19 exposure induced loneliness. Conclusion: Exposure to COVID-19 adversity had a cumulative negative impact on mental health. Improving coping, finding meaning, stimulating existing religious and spiritual resources, network interventions and stimulating internet use may enable older adults to maintain mental health during events with large societal impact, yet these factors appear protective regardless of exposure to specific adversities. COVID-19 vaccination had a positive effect on mental health.
KW - Anxiety
KW - COVID-19
KW - Depression
KW - Loneliness
KW - Mental health
KW - Resilience
UR - https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=85150714413&origin=inward
UR - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36964770
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85150714413&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-023-02457-5
DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-023-02457-5
M3 - Article
C2 - 36964770
SN - 0933-7954
VL - 58
SP - 1109
EP - 1120
JO - Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology
JF - Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology
IS - 7
ER -