New data shows that individuals of
lower socioeconomic status experience better emotional well-being and mental
health during the coronavirus crisis.
By Sara Heath
April 02,
2020 - Socioeconomic status could influence consumer experience and
emotional well-being throughout the coronavirus epidemic, according to
new figures from
an Ipsos-Axios poll, although not exactly in the way to be expected.
On the whole,
individuals from lower socioeconomic status tend to be doing better, not worse,
than their higher-income peers as they contend with the new social distancing
and other consequences stemming from the coronavirus spread. These individuals
are less likely to say their emotional well-being has taken a hit as the result
of the virus.
Thirty-four percent
of individuals with less education and lower incomes said social distancing and
the coronavirus have harmed their emotional well-being. This comes compared to
36 percent of individuals of middle socioeconomic status and 45 percent of
those in the poll’s two upper bands of socioeconomic status who said the same.
These findings may be
counterintuitive, poll administrators acknowledged. Individuals of lower
socioeconomic status typically experience a number of social determinants of
health that make it difficult to obtain overall wellness, including mental
health wellness.
In fact, the social
determinants of health have come to the forefront in the midst of the COVID-19
spread. Individuals with low incomes, who have lost their jobs, who are
homeless, or who struggle with food access may face challenges as social distancing exacerbates some
of their previous social risk factors.
These differences are
likely the outcome of different perceptions. Individuals who are of lower
socioeconomic status may objectively have more reason to be concerned or
worried during this tenuous time.
For example, one in
five workers are being furloughed, the poll showed, and those workers are
concentered in the middle, middle-lower, and lower socioeconomic strata, the
poll showed.
Twenty, 19, and 15
percent of individuals in those groups have been furloughed, respectively. Only
9 percent of upper and 13 percent of upper-middle socioeconomic strata reported
the same.
Fifty-seven respondents
said they were still being asked to come into work, a number that poll
administrators said was concentrated among those with less education and lower
incomes. This puts those individuals at risk for contracting the coronavirus.
“It's a tale of two Americas,”
Cliff Young, president of Ipsos US Public Affairs, said in an Axios article.
“The rich and affluent have gone virtual. They’ve maintained their jobs through
the virtual world,” he said. “The working and the poor are more exposed.”
But that just may be
where perception comes into play. Individuals of lower socioeconomic status may
have more to worry about, but they always do, even when there isn’t a global
pandemic. For that reason, they may not being experiencing as great a change in
their own emotional well-being or mental health.
Meanwhile,
high-income individuals may be seeing a more drastic relative change in their
lifestyles, leading to an impact on well-being and mental health.
Those considerations
for social determinants of health and socioeconomic status notwithstanding, the
poll did show that consumer and public experience during the coronavirus is
starting to level off. Overall, fewer respondents reported a decline in their
mental health and emotional well-being this week than last — 30 versus 35
percent and 37 versus 43 percent, respectively.
Individuals are also
reporting a better supply chain, with groceries and most cleaning products
being more plentifully available. Individuals are still reporting challenges
with obtaining toilet paper.
Importantly, the poll
mostly showed at least no change in ability to access
healthcare, although 24 respondents did say they experienced a
small decline in care access. Most respondents observed no health change in
themselves or their household members, as well as no change in their ability to
protect the health of themselves and their household members.
The coronavirus
spread has taken a consider toll on public mental health, experts agree. In
addition to the exacerbation of key social determinants of health, COVID-19 has
been a threat to patients’ perceived sense of safety and comfort. As the public
continues to contend with virus spread, however, it will also contend with this
new normal.
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