Washington — American society seems to be suffering the psychological impacts of collective trauma in the aftermath of Covid-19, according to the results of a new survey from the American Psychological Association. Psychologists warn that a superficial characterization of “returning to normal” obscures post-traumatic effects on mental and physical health.
The long-term stress experienced since the CovidThe onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on well-being, as evidenced by a significant increase in reported mental health problems and chronic illnesses, according to findings from Stress in America™ 2023a national survey of more than 3,000 U.S. adults ages 18 and older conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of the APA.
The survey found that people ages 35 to 44 reported the largest increase in chronic health conditions since the pandemic: 58% in 2023, up from 48% in 2019. Adults ages 35 to 44 also experienced the largest increase in mental health diagnoses: 45%. reported mental illness in 2023, up from 31% in 2019, although adults aged 18 to 34 still reported the highest rate of mental illness, at 50% in 2023. Adults aged 35 to 44 were more likely to declare this money (77% compared to 31% in 2019). 65%) and the economy (74% versus 51%) are the factors that are causing them significant stress today compared to 2019.
“THE CovidThe Covid-19 pandemic has created a collective experience among Americans. Although the early pandemic-related lockdowns may seem like a distant past, the consequences remain,” said Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, APA Executive Director. “We cannot ignore the fact that we have been significantly changed by the loss of more than a million Americans, as well as changes in our workplaces, our school systems and our culture at large. To move toward post-traumatic growth, we must first identify and understand the psychological wounds that remain.
APA psychologists noted that many people had generally positive perceptions of their physical health, even when they reported being diagnosed with a chronic illness. More than four in five adults rated their physical health as good, very good or excellent (81%), but 66% of adults said a health professional had told them they had a chronic illness .
Additionally, 81% of adults said their mental health was good, very good or excellent, while more than a third (37%) said they had been diagnosed with a mental health problem, an increase of 5 points percentage compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019 (32%).
The majority of adults also minimized their stress; 67% said their problems are not “serious enough” to be stressed about, knowing that others have even worse problems. When asked why they did not seek treatment, the top reasons adults gave were the belief that therapy doesn’t work (40%), lack of time (39%), or lack of confidence ( 37%). Despite these reasons, almost half (47%) said they wish they had someone to help them manage their stress, and 62% said they don’t talk about their stress because they don’t want to. not burden others.
Nearly a quarter of adults (24%) rated their average stress between eight and 10 on a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means little or no stress and 10 means a lot of stress. This represents an increase from 19% in 2019, before the pandemic. This increase was reflected in all age groups except those 65 and older: 34% of 18-34 year olds reported this in 2023 (+8 percentage points from 2019); 31% of 35-44 year olds (+10 percentage points); 22% of 45-64 year olds (+4 percentage points); and 9% of 65+ (-1 percentage point). Parents of children under 18 who rate their average stress between eight and 10 also saw a significant increase (33% in 2023 compared to 24% in 2019).
In 2023, parents were more likely than other adults to report that financial difficulties had increased within their household (46% versus 34%), that money was a cause of arguments within their family ( 58% versus 30%) and that they are more likely to feel consumed by money-related worries (66% versus 39%). Most troubling is that, compared to other adults, parents of children under 18 were more likely to report that most of the time their stress was completely overwhelming (48% vs. 26%), that they were so stressed that they felt numb (42% vs. 22%) or most of the time they are so stressed that they can’t function (41% vs. 20%).
“Stress affects every system in the body, so it is crucial that Americans know the serious impacts of stress and what they can do to reduce the effect of stressors in their lives, as well as receive help from their health care providers, their workplace, and support systems to prevent further health crises,” Evans said.
More information on the survey results and how to manage stress can be found at Webpage on Stress in America.
Methodology
The research was conducted online in the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of the American Psychological Association among 3,185 adults ages 18 and older residing in the United States (i.e., a sample national). Additionally, oversampling increased the totals by race/ethnicity: 805 Black individuals, 811 Latino/a/e, and 800 Asian individuals. For adults who identify as Latino/a/e, interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. The survey was conducted from August 4 to 26, 2023.
Respondents to this survey were selected from those who agreed to participate in Harris surveys. The sampling accuracy of Harris online polls is measured using a Bayesian credibility interval. For this study, the national sample data is accurate to within +2.5 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. This credible interval will be wider among subsets of the population of interest surveyed.
