Prevalence of Depression Symptoms Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among Two Asian American Ethnic Groups

Asian Americans have experienced compounding stressors during the pandemic as a result of racial discrimination. We aim of to investigate the prevalence of depression symptoms among Asian Americans before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine differences based on socio-demographic factors. Da...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of immigrant and minority health 2022-08, Vol.24 (4), p.909-917
Main Authors: Lozano, Paula, Rueger, Sandra Yu, Lam, Helen, Louie, Naomi, Southworth, Alia, Maene, Chieko, Mo, Yicklun, Randal, Fornessa, Kim, Karen
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adults
Aggression
Asian Americans
Comparative Law
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Cross-sectional studies
Cultural competence
Demography
Depression (Psychology)
Ethnic groups
Ethnicity
Harassment
Health education
Health services
International & Foreign Law
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Mental depression
Mental health
Mental Health Programs
Mental health services
Minority & ethnic groups
Original Paper
Pandemics
Private International Law
Public Health
Racial discrimination
Sociodemographics
Sociology
Stress
Symptoms
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Summary:Asian Americans have experienced compounding stressors during the pandemic as a result of racial discrimination. We aim of to investigate the prevalence of depression symptoms among Asian Americans before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine differences based on socio-demographic factors. Data are from a cross-sectional study (N = 636) among Chinese and South Asian adults in Chicago collected between February and May 2020. One cohort of participants were surveyed from each ethnic group before the pandemic and a second cohort of participants were surveyed during the pandemic. Depression symptoms increased more than two-fold, from 9% pre-pandemic to 21% during the COVID-19 pandemic. We found an increase in depression symptoms during the pandemic for South Asians, men and adults older than 30 years. These findings call for public health education that effectively addresses anti-Asian harassment and violence and ensure that culturally competent mental health services are provided to Asian Americans from diverse ethnic backgrounds.
ISSN:1557-1912
1557-1920
DOI:10.1007/s10903-021-01287-4