Dr. Cavanagh's latest article, titled "Longitudinal Change in Adolescent Depression and Anxiety Symptoms from before to during the COVID-19 Pandemic" was recently published in The Journal of Research on Adolescence.
This collaborative project brought together 12 longitudinal studies across 3 continents to examine changes in adolescents’ depression and anxiety symptoms from before the COVID-19 pandemic to during the first 6 months of the pandemic.
First, we found that depression (but not anxiety) symptoms increased significantly (a median increase of 28%) from pre-pandemic to during-pandemic.
Second, we tested age, race/ethnicity, disease burden, & government restrictions as moderators. The most negative mental health impacts were reported by multiracial youth and those youth living with "lockdown" restrictions.
The paper provides a multinational look at adolescent mental health during the early months of the pandemic. The results suggest that we invest in ways to support adolescents’ mental health during the pandemic, as it is ongoing.