COVID | Free Full-Text | Experiences and Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Thematic Analysis
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1. Introduction
3. Results
As themes emerged during data analysis, responses were broadly categorized into one of two categories: having experienced a pandemic-related impact or not. The participants largely reported pandemic impacts (>97% in each epoch), and this remained consistent across the three epochs. No impact responses slightly increased from the Spring into Summer and Fall/Winter and were largely reflected by comments that participants were adapting (“No real effect. Having been adapting to changes” (45–54 aged female from Alberta; Summer) or had returned to normal “Not much change. Our school reopened and I’m back to a routine…” (35–44 aged female from Saskatchewan; Fall/Winter). Impact responses were further categorized into negative, positive, and neutral impacts. Often, responses occupied multiple codes, spanning several themes. The negative impact category encompassed adverse effects resulting from the pandemic, while positive impact consisted of reported benefits. Alternatively, a third category of neutral impact was established to represent reported experiences that were neither beneficial nor adverse but captured identified experiences nonetheless. Each sub-theme is described below.
3.1. Negative Impact
The participants reported a subjective negative impact in the Spring (80%), Summer (77%), and Fall/Winter (79%) epochs. The most prevalent negative impacts (>5% of comments) were related to mental or emotional health, restricted activities, work, social impacts, feelings of worry, and children. Negative impacts on daily routines and finances and concerns about government responses and extremist views were also reported.
3.1.1. Mental or Emotional Health
The negative impact on mental or emotional health was most reported by participants across epochs (Spring, 16.48%; Summer, 16.84%; Fall/Winter, 14.34%). Mentions of anxiety, stress and depressive symptoms were most common. Although mentions of stress remained constant across epochs, there were notable declines in mentions of anxiety and depression from the Spring and Summer to the Fall/Winter epoch.
Participants reported a sense of uneasiness and anxiety surrounding generalized uncertainties related to the pandemic, such as “Life feels eerie and disjointed, increase in anxiety and stress with so much unknown” (35–44 aged female from Alberta; Spring), or feeling depressed in varying degrees in each Spring, Summer, and Fall/Winter epochs, such as “I am a bit depressed and missing my everyday regular life” (18–24 aged female from Alberta; Spring). Additionally, broad adverse impacts to their mental health were generally indicated as an impact of the pandemic and its subsequent public health policies, “Lack of sports is hard for mental health and stress release” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Summer), and notable changes to general stress levels were frequently indicated, “Makes me feel like my life is stopping. Angry a lot more. Stressed about when my life will begin–working again, getting a job in my field, finding a partner, etc.” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter).
3.1.2. Restricted Activities
A negative impact of restrictions in activities was also consistent across epochs, although there was a slight decrease in this theme during the Summer as compared to the Spring and Fall/Winter. Reported impacts of the pandemic cited restrictions or elimination of organized activities such as, “I can’t go out to do fun things that I used to do, such as watch a movie at a theater” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Spring), or access to community resources, “The lockdown has affected my ability to see my doctor in person” (65–74 aged female from Alberta; Summer). These restrictions also affected rates of physical activity among participants, especially as weather changes eliminated outdoor options while public health policies limited access to indoor facilities, “I am a little anxious about the winter setting in. I will have to find ways to continue to exercise outside…” (55–64 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter). Additionally, restrictions to entertainment venues, restaurants, or organized sports were reported as impacts of the pandemic. For example, “I haven’t taken public transit or eating in a restaurant or gone to coffee shop since March. These are things I used to do multiple times a week” (25–34 aged female from British Columbia; Spring). Participants also frequently commented on limited access to travel to connect with friends and family or loss of pleasurable activity, such as the following quote from the Fall/Winter: “Inability to travel abroad or widely in Canada has been depressing as it is something I love to do” (35–44 aged female from Alberta).
3.1.3. Work
The negative impact of the pandemic on work was consistent across epochs, particularly with respect to disruptions, working from home, changes in expectations, and work–life balance. Changes to work, such as loss of employment, were cited because of the pandemic in each epoch: “I have been laid off for 8 weeks, and likely will be for 12 or more” (35–44 aged female from Alberta; Spring). Changes to the working environment, specifically as a result of having to work from home, were noted as an upsetting consequence of the pandemic: “Anxiety rises the closer I get to returning to work and having to figure out what to do with the kids…” (35–44 aged female from Saskatchewan; Summer) and “Significantly changed the nature of my work from face to face working with students to now interacting through google meet” (55–64 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter). Having to work from home was mentioned more often in the Spring epoch compared to the Summer and Fall/Winter epochs. Along with work environment changes, modifications to their work, such as increased demands or intensities, were also reported, “Increased work hours (job is in health and safety), staff training, new tasks at work” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Summer).
3.1.4. Social
Another major theme was the impact on participants’ social connections due to the pandemic, specifically ability to see friends and family, impacts of isolation, and impacts on interpersonal relationships broadly. Negative impacts with respect to COVID-related conflicts, lack of contact with work colleagues, and lack of physical contact were also noted. Although pandemic-related restrictions eased during Summer 2020, with increased opportunities to connect socially, negative impacts reported regarding social connections were constant across the epochs.
Not being able to see friends and family in-person was a noted negative impact. For example, “I have a parent in long term care, and I cannot see them. This without question has been the worst part of the pandemic” (45–54 aged female from Alberta; Spring); “The lack of friends wanting to hug or shake hands as usual is challenging for me” (54–64 aged female from Saskatchewan; Summer); and “Social media contact and phone calls are not the same as physical interactions. Humans are social beings that need interaction and physical contact. The pandemic is changing the way we see and experience life” (Participant 133; Fall/Winter). Participants also widely reported consequences of isolation either due to the pandemic directly or due to pandemic-related restrictions, such as “The social isolation is caustic. I want to hug my children. I want to work with my colleagues again” (45–54 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter). Interpersonal relationship impacts were also a major theme, with participants reporting significant changes or conflicts that stressed their close relationships, “Spending 24/7 with my spouse has also been a new challenge which has been both stressful and a form of growth…” (45–54 aged female from Alberta; Spring) or “Strained relationships with family members who do not think COVID needs to be taken seriously” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter).
3.1.5. Worry
Another major and consistent theme was that of experiencing worry, which experienced a sharp increase in the Fall/Winter, representing 11.45% of all responses. Although a generalized anxiety was captured in the mental health theme, the worry theme represented a distinct future-oriented concern for explicit pandemic-consequences, concerning the future broadly, for others, and for COVID virus transmission. Participants were concerned about the future broadly, “Worry, loss of activities and friends, deep concern for the future” (55–64 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter). Concern for others in lieu of themselves was also an observed concern, indicating that the participants felt secure in their position but had significant concern for their personal connections or those vulnerable to severe infection, “I have a constant concern of the health risks on me and all my loved ones. I worry about the potential of one of them getting sick and me not being able to be there to take care of them” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Spring). Participants also expressed being scared about virus transmission, “I am scared to leave my house, I am scared to get treatment for my medical conditions, I am scared to go anywhere without a mask and hand sanitizer” (18–24 aged female from Ontario; Summer). Finally, although <2% of responses in each epoch, some participants made spontaneous reports of future financial uncertainties, “The primary impact has come down to the financial side of things and the contributing uncertainty of what will happen next” (35–44 aged female from Alberta; Spring).
3.1.6. Children
Many participants reported living with children and the negative impact of the pandemic related to their children. Child-related impacts were higher in the Spring and Summer, with a decrease in the Fall/Winter. Education, childcare, and child mental health were the most common concerns mentioned. Still, concerns about children’s social life and extracurricular activities were also noted.
Participants reported pandemic-related adverse impacts on children’s education and decisions surrounding their children’s schooling; the prevalence of education-related comments somewhat decreased during the Fall/Winter epoch after the return to school throughout Canada: “Experiencing a great deal of concern/anxiety over the decision of whether or not to send our children to school in the fall” (35–44 aged female from Alberta; Spring). Concerns related to securing childcare as a result of the pandemic and pandemic-related responses represented were also a cause for concern and impacted participants broadly. For example,
not having childcare—either when they were closed in April/May, or now when the kids get runny noses they are home for 10–14 days … This makes it extremely difficult to get work done, and greatly increases the stress my partner and I feel.
(35–44 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter).
Lastly, some participants also reported concerns regarding their children’s mental health, such as “As a parent, mental health of daughter” (35–44 aged female from Alberta; Spring), or “I am just worried about how it is affecting the kids. It has caused a lot of anxiety and social issues in them in the last 6 months” (45–54 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter).
3.2. Positive Impact
Although less prevalent, positive impacts were reported by participants across epochs, highest in Spring (8.52%), lowest in Summer (4.94%) and rebounded in Fall/Winter (6.19%). The most prevalent positive impacts reported were improved relationships, the discovery of new activities, gratitude, and improved mental health. For example, participants reported improvements in their interpersonal relationships as a result of the pandemic through pro-social behaviours such as “Rather than intensifying negative emotions, mandatory lockdown has made me feel loved, supported and connected as my good friends have brought toys for my son to borrow, picked up and delivered groceries, called to chat and offered to help” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter). Additionally, discovering new activities that they would not have otherwise would have participated in was spontaneously reported as an impact of the pandemic that led to opportunities for new hobbies, “It has given me a lot of time for reading and learning new things. I have been really working on learning Spanish” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Summer). Similarly, participants expressed generalized gratitude for their life after reflecting on the pandemic’s wider impact, such as through their health, “… I am thankful to be supported and healthy” (25–34 aged female from Nova Scotia; Spring), or their current life circumstances, “I’m very grateful for my current situation. … I feel lucky to have a permanent job that can be done from home, that I work on a compassionate team, and that I live near family and friends” (25–34 aged female from Alberta; Summer). Finally, the pandemic also positively affected participants’ mental health, improving their overall wellbeing for a small proportion of participants, particularly those with pre-existing mental illnesses such as those with social anxiety, “I was already an isolated person due to my anxiety, so if anything I’ve found this relieving” (18–24 aged female from Alberta; Summer).
3.3. Neutral Impact
Finally, there were several neutral impacts of the pandemic in that participants did not view them as either positive or negative. These included comments on pandemic response, specifically compliance with public health responses and mask use, and new or increased use of communication technology, such as “I am organizing online events, … calling/texting more…” (35–44 aged female from Alberta; Fall/Winter).
4. Discussion
The purpose of this study was to identify the perspectives and reported experiences that emerged in the initial phases of the COVID-19 pandemic from open-ended responses and whether themes varied over the follow-up period in each the Spring (April 2020–June 2020), Summer (July 2020–August 2020) or Fall/Winter (September 2020–January 2021) epochs. Consistent with previous studies, participants predominately reported negative impacts of the pandemic on their mental wellbeing, ability to engage in activities, work, social connections, worries, and adverse impacts on their children in each epoch. In the Spring, impacts were primarily centred around adverse mental health effects, with the highest reports of restricted activities and work- and child-related impacts. This Spring epoch also observed the highest, albeit minor, positive pandemic impacts. The Summer epoch continued to demonstrate negative impacts, primarily driven by mental health effects but saw a drop in restricted activities and work and child disruptions. Unexpectedly, given the increased accessibility to activities, the Summer epoch also saw a marked uptick in social connection disruptions alongside a fall in positive pandemic-related effects. The Fall/Winter epoch had a slight increase in negative impacts but decreased in the proportion related to mental or emotional health. This Fall/Winter epoch saw a rise in activity restrictions, similar to the proportion observed in the Spring, and ongoing social disruptions. Although worry and daily routine disruptions increased to peak proportions, child-related impacts decreased, and positive impacts slightly increased relative to the earlier Summer epoch. Overall, although impacts were predominately negative, some participants reported positive impacts, such as strengthened relationships, trying and enjoying new activities, an overall sense of gratitude, and mentions of improvements to their mental wellbeing, suggesting an adaptation to the pandemic and pandemic-related responses.
Future Directions and Conclusions
The current study provided rich insights into the unique lived experiences of individuals in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and how the pandemic affected them over time. Participants were given the opportunity to respond in ways that were meaningful to them, providing insights into the impacts that were particularly salient for those impacted rather than responses to a priori assumptions and questions, which has practical implications for improving outcomes and experiences for those affected in future outbreaks and pandemic responses. Importantly, this research may inform future pandemic responses through intentional efforts to mitigate adverse effects found here. Particularly beneficial is the possibility that the findings from this study can inform future health policy creation that can incorporate supports that buffer adverse impacts. For example, participants largely reported negative impacts on their mental health as a result of the pandemic, and although public health restrictions were necessary to preserve physiological health, in future pandemic responses, these effects may be mitigated with the concurrent deployment of mental health supports. Similarly, activity restrictions may co-occur with offering accessible alternative community support activities.
In conclusion, the current study highlighted how the pandemic impacted the experiences of individuals during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study is uniquely positioned to understand how the pandemic broadly impacted individuals and the importance of those impacts based on their lived experiences over time, extending the valuable knowledge gathered from niche studies. The current study also reflects the changes in the importance of impacts on individuals as the pandemic continued through the longitudinal and open-ended nature of this qualitative approach. Although negative impacts were predominately reported, particularly on mental health, access to activities, and work, it is clear the pandemic had diverse and complex impacts, with some varying by time coinciding with public health restrictions and infection rates.
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