Couples ’ social networks took long-lasting hit during COVID

Key takeaways:A UCLA study shows that a the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, social interactions, both virtual and in person, declined significantly for married couples.The decline was found to be greater and more long-lasting for Black and Latino couples and lower-income couples than for white couples and wealthier couples.The researchers suggest exploring new ways of protecting public health during crises that also help more vulnerable populations sustain meaningful relationships.Following the lockdowns and restrictions on public gatherings in the early days of COVID-19, the social networks of white, Black and Latino couples all shrank, UCLA psychologists report. But these networks shrank most significantly among lower-income and Latino and Black couples and didn ’t fully recover even after vaccines became available and the most severe restrictions were lifted.The UCLA study, published in the journalPersonality and Social Psychology Bulletin, is the first to examine the pandemic-related loss of connections with family, friends and colleagues among diverse couples recruited from lower-income neighborhoods — a population at particular risk from COVID-19. The findings, they say, highlight the vulnerability of marginalized groups to the consequences of certain public health measures.“Limiting social interactions may well have reduced the spread of infection,” said lead author Benjamin Haggerty, a doctoral student in theUCLA Marriage and Close Relationships Lab,“but ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news