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Published on: July 10, 2017
Sociodemographic factors as moderators of COVID-19 stress on depression
Kenneth G Rice1, Michelle Aiello1, Barbara Durán1
1Department of Counseling and Psychological Services, Center for the Study of Stress, Trauma, and Resilience, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia.
Background And Objectives:
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted many aspects of daily life, but relatively little is known about COVID-19-related stress for subgroups in the population. We examined differences in COVID-stress and depression as a function of gender, race, ethnicity, and subjective social status. We tested these factors as moderators of the association between COVID-stress and depression.
Design:
We used a cross-sectional design to test associations between sociodemographic factors, COVID-stress, and depression. Analyses were based on confirmatory factor analytic and structural equations models.
Methods:
A convenience sample of 1,058 U.S. MTurk workers and college students (54.5% cisgender women; 55.1% racial/ethnic minoritized individuals) was recruited. Participants completed self-report measures of COVID-stress and depression.
Results:
COVID-stress was positively associated with depression. Overall, neither gender nor racial minoritized status moderated COVID-stress effects on depression. However, intersectional analyses revealed COVID-stress was a significant risk factor for depression among Black women compared to other participants. COVID-stress was more strongly linked to depression for Hispanic individuals and participants with higher social status.
Conclusions:
Future studies may benefit from the COVID-stress scale evaluated in this study and by considering the differential effects of sociodemographic factors on psychological functioning during the pandemic.
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