Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH
Volume 18, Issue 16, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18168238
Keywords
COVID-19; mental health; Japan; prevalence; social isolation
Funding
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI grants [17H03589, 19K10671, 19K10446, 18H03107, 18H03062, 21H04856]
- JSPS [19K19439]
- Research Support Program to Apply the Wisdom of the University to Tackle COVID-19 Related Emergency Problems, University of Tsukuba
- Health Labour Sciences Research Grant [19FA1005, 19FG2001]
- Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research [19K19439, 19K10446, 18H03107, 17H03589, 19K10671, 21H04856] Funding Source: KAKEN
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This study examined changes in social isolation prevalence during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan, finding an increase in social isolation during the pandemic, particularly among older individuals and men. The study also highlighted the impact of pandemic-induced social isolation on mental health outcomes, emphasizing the need for immediate measures to address this issue.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is assumed to have caused an increase in the number of socially isolated people. However, the prevalence of social isolation during the pandemic has not been well studied, particularly among Asian populations. This study investigated changes in the prevalence of social isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and examined its association with mental health among the general Japanese population. Data were obtained from a large-scale, web-based nationwide survey conducted from August to September 2020 (n = 28,000; aged 15-79 years). Social isolation was defined as less frequent contact with people other than co-residing family members. We assessed the participants' frequency of contact in January (before the pandemic) and August 2020 (during the pandemic). Mental health outcomes included psychological distress, suicidal ideation, loneliness, and fear of COVID-19. We analyzed the data of 25,482 respondents. The weighted prevalence (95% confidence interval) of social isolation was 21.2% (20.7-21.7%) and 27.9% (27.3-28.4%) before and during the pandemic, respectively. The prevalence of social isolation increased by 6.7 (6.3-7.0) percentage points during the pandemic. Older people and men had the greatest increase in the prevalence of social isolation. People who became socially isolated during the pandemic had greater loneliness and fear of COVID-19 than those who were consistently not socially isolated since before the pandemic. This study suggested that social isolation had increased during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. Our findings highlight the importance of developing immediate measures against social isolation to maintain good mental health.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available