COVID-19 Commons^™

“I Was Not Wonder Woman And Required Help”: Black, Latina, And White Women’S Recovery From The Covid-19 Pandemic, J. Mitchell Vaterlaus, Colton Pierce, Harry Foster, Alison Brennan, Nicole Wanago

Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences

The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affected women, particularly women of color, yet less is known about their recovery experiences following the end of the public health emergency. This exploratory mixed-methods study examined recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic among Black, Latina, and White women in the United States. Participants (N = 133) completed a survey that included a self-reported recovery measure and open-ended questions regarding their recovery experiences. A chi-square analysis indicated a significant association between race/ethnicity and recovery status, with Latina women more likely to report ongoing recovery than Black and White women. Codebook thematic analysis identified four themes: (1) …

The Ramifications Of Covid-19 On Young Adults With Ocd, Clare E. Mcintosh

Dissertations

The coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic was a profound event in modern history, contributing to significant disruptions on a societal and individual level. This period of time was marked by elevated uncertainty and fear among individuals. COVID-19 contributed to deterioration in not only physical health but also psychological well-being. One mental health condition frequently under-examined and saturated with misconceptions is obsessive-compulsive disorder. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a condition characterized by the presence of obsessions and/or compulsions. Intolerance of uncertainty is a core component of the condition, and the pandemic was riddled with unpredictability. The purpose of this study was to …

Post-Pandemic Telebehavioral Health: Sustaining And Regulating Remote Mental Health Care As A Core Modality, Weiqiao Dong

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

The United States continues to face a persistent mental health crisis after the COVID-19 pandemic, raising a policy question about the long-term role and regulation of telebehavioral health as a core modality of care. This thesis examines that question through a case study of New York State, an early center of the pandemic and a leader in telehealth policy reform.

Guided by the Health Policy Triangle framework, this thesis integrates longitudinal data from all 62 New York counties for 2010-2025 with a 2025 cross-sectional dataset covering 61 counties. Seventeen standardized indicators are organized into four dimensions: geographic, economic, demographic, and …

Full Issue: The International Undergraduate Journal Of Health Sciences, Volume 6, Issue 1, July 2026

International Undergraduate Journal of Health Sciences

Full Issue: The International Undergraduate Journal of Health Sciences, Volume 6, Issue 1, July 2026.

Online Rights Defense Among Chinese Americans Against Racial Aggression In The U.S. During The Covid-19, Fangzhu Lu, Wenshan Jia

Communication Faculty Articles and Research

Purpose

This study investigates how Chinese American communities responded to heightened racial discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic by utilizing social media platforms to safeguard their civil rights, articulate collective concerns, and mobilize resistance against racial aggression.

Methodology

Through qualitative case study analysis, the research examines the social media activities of six advocacy organizations, including three X accounts (WashTheHate, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Asian Americans Advancing Justice) and three Instagram accounts (Stop AAPI Hate, Stop Asian Hate, Advancing Justice: AAJC). The analysis focuses on the content strategies and communication mechanisms employed to counteract racial hostility.

Findings

The selected organizations used social …

Socioeconomic Inequalities In Health-Related Quality Of Life During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Six-Country Comparison Using The Eq-5d-5 L, Joëlle Eijkens, Joshua M. Bonsel, You-Shan Feng, M. F. Bas Janssen, Erica I. Lubetkin, Juanita A. Haagsma

Publications and Research

Purpose

Despite the growing attention to health inequalities, there is no global consensus on how to measure socio-economic status. This study examined inequalities in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic across six countries—China, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US)—using three SES indicators: education level, income, and work status.

Methods

Between April and June 2020, individuals aged 18–75 years old completed a web-based survey. HRQoL was measured using the EQ-5D-5L Level Sum Score (LSS), where higher scores indicate poorer health. Country-specific differences in LSS across SES groups …

Trends Of Pediatric Psychotropic Polypharmacy In Massachusetts Before And During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Gianna D'Ambrozio

Graduate Doctoral Dissertations

Youth in the U.S. and internationally are increasingly being diagnosed with depression and related psychiatric conditions (Murthy, 2021) many of whom are being subjected to non-evidence-based, or what has been termed irrational, psychotropic polypharmacy (Barnett & Concepcion Zayas, 2019). Psychotropic polypharmacy can be defined as “the use of 2 or more psychiatric medications in the same patient,” (Zito et al., 2021) though definitions can vary. Using data from the Center for Health Information Analysis’ Massachusetts All-Payer Claims Database, this study examined the sociodemographic factors associated with high rates of polypharmacy, a hypothesized increase in pediatric psychotropic polypharmacy rates in Massachusetts …

Lessons Learned In Providing Infant And Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Rashele Wade

Journal of Global Awareness

Access to quality childcare is a protective factor from lifelong issues such as school failure, school drop-out, and incarceration. Conversely, preschool suspension and expulsion are significant risk factors. Evidence-based interventions, such as Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation, aim to reduce and eliminate the incidence of preschool suspensions and expulsions. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted access to quality childcare for many children across the country and globally. This study utilized a qualitative action research approach and generic qualitative inquiry to examine the research question, “How can we improve Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation through lessons learned during the …

“There Was Nothing Left To Give”: Experiences Of Compassion Fatigue Among Former In-Patient Psychiatric Clinicians, Katie Ladner

Counseling and Psychology Dissertations

Compassion Fatigue (CF) is a state of emotional and physical exhaustion resulting from prolonged exposure to stressful or traumatic experiences, specifically among healthcare workers, and it negatively impacts their ability to provide care to their patients and perform their jobs effectively (Singh et al., 2020). The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the lived experiences of compassion fatigue in mental health clinicians who previously worked in in-patient psychiatric hospitals and their subsequent resignations. This phenomenological research explored participants' understanding and descriptions of their CF experiences in their roles within psychiatric hospitals and how CF contributed to their leaving …

A Cross-Cultural Investigation Of Consumer Hoarding Behavior During Covid-19: Differences Between Sweden And The United States, Christy M. Cook, Pia A. Albinsson, James E. Stoddard

Atlantic Marketing Journal

This study is a cross-cultural exploration of consumer hoarding behavior during Covid-19; specifically, a comparison between Sweden and the United States. This research analyzes whether Swedish and American consumer hoarding behavior factors of prosocial orientation, consumer resilience and consumer risk-taking propensity reflect identical relationships during less predictable environmental forces (i.e., Covid-19 or global pandemic). Results from Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) show that consumer prosocial orientation is negatively related to consumer hoarding and prosocial orientation is positively related to consumer resilience. In turn, both prosocial orientation and consumer resilience exhibit a positive relationship towards consumer hoarding. Consumer resilience is …

Living In Liberal Areas Reduced Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Conservatives, Brittany L. Kmush, Rachel E. Dinero

Population Health Research Brief Series

Political divisions shaped public health responses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, with conservatives expressing higher vaccine hesitancy than liberals. But does where conservatives live matter? This brief summarizes findings from a study using survey data from 683 U.S. adults (ages 18-94) collected March-April 2023, combined with 2020 presidential election results by zip code. The authors found that liberals consistently had low vaccine hesitancy and high uptake regardless of where they lived, but conservatives living in lower Trump vote share communities reported lower vaccine hesitancy and higher vaccination and booster uptake than conservatives in high Trump vote share communities. This pattern was …

Hold Harmless For Whom? The Impact Of Covid Era Policies On School Funding, Teachers, And Students, Michah W. Rothbart, Samantha Cervantes, Amy Ellen Schwartz

Center for Policy Research

This study evaluates the fiscal and academic consequences of New York City’s hold harmless policy during COVID-19, which aimed to stabilize school expenditures amid unexpected enrollment declines by restoring schools’ funding up to initial levels. We examine how school racial composition predicts whether or when schools receive hold harmless “treatment” and assess the impact of hold harmless on financial resources, staffing, and student outcomes, exploring heterogeneity by timing of policy announcement. Although schools with higher White student shares were no more likely than those with higher Hispanic or Black shares to receive hold harmless funds, schools with higher Black shares …

Pandemic Mask Mandates And Closures Were Linked To Increased Gun Violence, Douglas A. Wolf, Emily W. Wiemers, Iliya Gutin, Jennifer Karas Montez, Shannon M. Monnat

Population Health Research Brief Series

Gun violence worsened substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This brief summarizes findings from a study using weekly gun violence casualty data from 2016-2021 for 304 U.S. counties from the Gun Violence Archive and COVID-19 policy data from county-level measures of activity restrictions and masking requirements. The authors find that policies requiring masking and activity restrictions were associated with significant increases in gun violence. Indoor masking requirements were linked to a 28% increase in gun violence, while activity restrictions were associated with a 4.2% increase.

Covid And The Great Retrenchment, Samuel R. Bagenstos

Articles

The past six years have seen two dramatic shifts in federal health and benefits policy. First, during the COVID pandemic, the government dramatically expanded public benefits. These expansions had incredibly positive effects, and recipients were largely satisfied with them. But after a relatively short time, Congress rolled back nearly all of the expansion. Worse, the immediate pullback set the stage for even more significant retrenchments in the second Trump Administration. Where in 2023 the United States came closest to universal health care in its history—with a record low uninsured rate of 7.7%—the Trump Administration’s Medicaid cuts and failure to extend …

Viral Misunderstandings: Reddit Posts And The Covid-19 Infodemic, Julia C. Knutson

Scripps Senior Theses

Information epidemics or “infodemics” became the center of misinformation conversations, due to a global increase in information spread surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. While many academic scholars and institutions, such as the World Health Organization (WHO) attribute the cause of infodemics to anti-science attitudes and the public’s lack of scientific literacy, scholars in Science, Technology, and Society argue that analyzing misinformation within these isolated bounds limits our understanding of its underlying social and historical contexts. Using the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study for misinformation analysis reveals a gap in our current understanding of how people who resonate with or spread …

Barriers To Immunity: Understanding Covid-19 Vaccine Uptake In Africa, Emilia Blechschmidt

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine uptake across African countries, with a focus on structural, informational, and behavioral barriers to immunization. Drawing on cross-country data, the study analyzes how access to transportation, reliable information, and healthcare resources shape vaccination rates, alongside the effect of demographics and institutional factors in shaping individual perceptions of risk and vaccine safety.

The findings emphasize that the broader strength and preparedness of national health systems strongly influence vaccine uptake. Countries that demonstrated higher coverage of routine childhood immunizations, such as polio and hepatitis B, also tended to perform better in COVID-19 uptake efficiency …

Exploring The Impact Of Adverse Childhood Experiences On Preventive Healthcare Utilization In Rural Georgia, Ryan R. Traylor

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the relationship between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and preventive healthcare use among adults in Georgia, specifically within rural populations facing structural barriers. Using 2023 Georgia Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data, the research analyzes associations between ACE exposure, rural residence, and preventive care outcomes, including physical exams and flu vaccinations. Guided by an intersectionally adapted version of Andersen’s Behavioral Model of Health Services Use, the study evaluates how predisposing factors, enabling resources, and perceived barriers relate to healthcare engagement. Logistic regression analyses assess the correlation of ACE exposure, cost barriers, provider access, and sociodemographics with preventive …

What Are The Global Differences In Air Quality Due To The Covid-19 Pandemic?, Jude Spencer, Ian Mcgee, Brandon Solis-Martinez

Student Scholar Symposium

The COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented global disruptions, including significant changes in air quality due to lockdown measures, reduced industrial activity, and shifts in transportation patterns. Air pollution, primarily from nitrogen oxides (NOₓ), carbon dioxide (CO₂), and particulate matter (PM2.5), is a major environmental and public health concern. While some studies suggest temporary improvements in air quality during lockdowns, long-term impacts remain uncertain across different regions. To examine this, we investigated the research question: "What are the global differences in air quality due to the Covid-19 pandemic?" Using peer-reviewed studies from the Greenfile and ScienceDirect databases, along with EPA data, …

Asian College Students' Well-Being During A Period Of Rising Anti-Asian Sentiment, Kyuhan Choi, Ying Shi, Maria Zhu

Center for Policy Research

We use a large survey of students in U.S. colleges to study the distinct ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying anti-Asian rhetoric shaped the experiences of Asian and Pacific Islanders (APIs). Using a difference-in-differences approach, we find that the pandemic led to Asian students experiencing more discrimination, feeling less safe during the day, and using fewer mental health services compared to White peers. The increase in discrimination and the perceived lower safety are concentrated among East and Southeast Asians, while South Asians were not affected. Despite these effects, we detect no relative deterioration in severe psychological distress or …

Food Access And Food Insecurity Among Early Childhood Educators And Staff Prior To And During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Mixed Methods Pilot Study, Rahel Mathews, Leah Pylate, Will Davis, Elizabeth Thorne, Jamila Taylor, Shecoya White, Bennett Pope, Emma Bryant

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

Emerging research indicates that 40% of early childhood education (ECE) workers experience food insecurity. The purpose of this study was to describe the food insecurity and food access of Head Start teachers and staff in Mississippi before the COVID-19 pandemic and to understand how COVID-19 affected food access. A mixed-methods design was employed using cross-sectional surveys, at two different time points, and three focus groups. Three Head Start centers from the Mississippi Coast participated. Approximately 52% of teacher and staff respondents experienced food insecurity before COVID-19; during the pandemic, their level of food insecurity worsened from low to very low …

Infectious Disease Crisis Communication After The Covid-19 Pandemic, Macy Lloyd

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States has experienced a proliferation of mis- and disinformation, an increasing politicization of health and science, and growing distrust in government, science, and institutions. While these trends present challenges for normal public health communications, during a public health emergency, such as an infectious disease outbreak, these challenges are even more acute. To address challenges at the local level, health departments need plans, products, and tools that adapt health crisis communications to the current media environment and meet community members where they are across the trust continuum. To develop an infectious disease incident communication plan, …

Higher Mortality Following Sars-Cov-2 Infection In Rural Versus Urban Dwellers Persists For Two Years Post-Infection, A. Jerrod Anzalone, Michael T. Vest, Makayla E. Schissel, Bradley Price, William B. Hillegass, Ronald Horswell, San Chu, Clifford J. Rosen, Lucio Miele, Susan L. Santangelo, Gordon S. Smith, Sally L. Hodder, Christopher G. Chute

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Previous studies demonstrated higher short-term mortality among rural compared with urban residents infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, whether this difference persists remains uncertain. This retrospective cohort study analyzed two-year post-COVID-19 mortality by rurality using the National Clinical Cohort Collaborative COVID-19 Enclave, a United States-based longitudinal electronic health record repository. We analyzed mortality among patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 between April 2020 and December 2022, with follow-up until December 2024. Patients were categorized into urban, urban-adjacent rural (UAR), and nonurban-adjacent rural (NAR) groups based on residential ZIP Code. Mortality differences were assessed using Kaplan-Meier analysis and weighted multivariable Cox regression, with weights derived …

The Science Of Sound: Studying The Cognitive, Emotional, And Physiological Effects Of Frequency, Genre, And Music, Jett Yarborough

Senior Honors Theses

Music influences emotion, physiology, and cognition, yet little is known about how the frequency it is tuned to affects these influences. Prior research has shown that music tuned to 432 Hz can reduce stress, lower blood pressure, and improve sleep. My colleagues and I conducted two studies to investigate this. Our research found that music tuned to 432 Hz promotes a significant increase in memory retention and induces a state of focus and relaxation. These results suggest that shifting from the standard tuning frequency of 440 Hz to 432 Hz could have a profoundly positive impact on our daily lives. …

Comparing Ideology And Covid-19 Preferences Of Canadian Public Health Workers And The General Population, Simon Kiss, Patrick Fafard, Andrea Perrella, Ketan Shankardass, Erick Lachapelle, Matthew Arp, Joslyn Trowbridge

Laurier Institute for the Study of Public Opinion and Policy

Objectives: This study tests whether and how the Canadian public health workforce differed from the Canadian general population in their political attitudes, worldviews and policy preferences related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Nearly identical surveys were fielded to the Canadian public health workforce in 2021 through leading public health associations and to a census-balanced sample of the general Canadian population in February and March 2021. through a consumer quota sample for a survey of the general population.

Results: The Canadian public health workforce demonstrates systematically more left-wing pro-egalitarian, anti-hierarchical, anti-individualist worldviews. Those in health promotion positions are slightly more to …

Finding Community: A Thematic Analysis Of Resilience During The Pandemic, Myles Kwitny, Quinn Richards, Grace Digirolamo, Shannon Freedman, Sophie Wenzel

Journal of Appalachian Health

Introduction: The Covid-19 pandemic impacted those within rural Appalachian communities, particularly people with marginalized identities.

Purpose: Through interviewing 44 participants from New River Valley, an Appalachian community in Virginia, this study sought to understand how resilience impacted individuals' experiences during the pandemic.

Methods: Participants belonged to one of the following groups: African American, Hispanic, older adults, or people who use drugs. Participants were required to reside in the New River Valley and be older than 18. Each participant was interviewed either in person, by phone, or over video call. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, then thematically analyzed for themes of resilience. …

Adolescent Students’ Adaptability During The Covid-19 Pandemic Impacting Their Academic Preparedness In College: A Qualitative Exploration Of Resilience In Secondary School Disruptions, Nicole Tyanne Jameson

Dissertations

This study, conducted several years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, takes a unique approach to investigating the long-term effects of the pandemic-induced disruptions on adolescents during secondary schooling and their academic preparedness in college. The study combined a descriptive qualitative analysis of academic routine data with quantifiable resilience scores, providing a comprehensive understanding of the challenges students faced, their adaptability and resilience, and the overall impact on their education journey into college. This comprehensive descriptive qualitative study utilizes triangulation of quantitative data and qualitative approaches to understand the subject matter thoroughly. The quantitative scores meticulously analyzed resiliency and …

Adolescent Online Leisure, Media Literacy, Online Victimization, And Multifaceted Well-Being During Covid-19: The Role Of Parental Support, Yunqi Wang

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The rapid advancement of the internet and digital technology has provided opportunities for adolescents to conduct leisure activities online on a daily basis. However, research on adolescent technology use and mental health often highlights negative effects without carefully examining the specific mechanisms, which overlooks the complexity of effects of online behaviors on adolescent well-being and the importance of developing adolescents’ media literacy skills. Moreover, despite the crucial role of family dynamics in adolescent development, research on how parental support and involvement might affect adolescent technology use and well-being is still limited. The current study retrieved data from Programme for International …

Inequality And Covid Risk At School: Racial Disparities In Indoor Density, Vaccination Rates, And Consequences For Absenteeism, Michael C. Quinn, Michah W. Rothbart, Amy Ellen Schwartz, Brian Elbel

Center for Policy Research

During the COVID pandemic, schools were widely believed to be a venue that facilitated disease transmission. While some worried Black and Hispanic students would disproportionately face greater risk of COVID exposure at school (school COVID risk) – given well-documented racially disparate school environments and resources – little empirical evidence exists documenting or refuting potential disparities in school COVID risk. This paper begins to fill this gap by examining racial disparities in the school environments that contribute to COVID risk at school—specifically, vaccination rates and classroom space per pupil (indoor density) - in New York City elementary schools. We then document …

“The Technology We’Ve Been Forced To Use”: Impact Of Online Service Delivery For Kinship Families During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Angela Tobin, Amanda Klein-Cox, Ramona Denby

Social Work Faculty Research

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly changed the service landscape for both professionals and families. Kinship families, who often navigate multiple systems concurrently with higher service needs, were among the most vulnerable. This study explores kinship caregivers’ and child welfare professionals’ perceptions of changes in service delivery during the pandemic, specifically the sudden shift to virtual platforms.

Materials and Methods: To understand participants’ experiences, focus groups with protocols shaped by initial Delphi Rounds were implemented with 25 kinship caregivers and 34 child welfare professionals from a national sample.

Results: Caregiver and professionals shared themes related to how COVID-19 precautions impacted service …

Pengaruh Vaksinasi Covid-19 Terhadap Kesehatan Dan Kondisi Ekonomi Masyarakat Di Indonesia, Ayu Lestari, Fauziah Zen

Jurnal Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Indonesia

The COVID-19 vaccination is considered crucial for controlling the pandemic and accelerating economic recovery. However, empirical evidence on the impact of vaccination on health and the economy at the district/city level in Indonesia remains limited. This study aims to analyze the impact of vaccination on health outcomes and economic conditions. The methodology used is a fixed effect model with monthly panel data on vaccination and health outcomes (positivity rate and recovery), as well as annual data on per capita expenditure in 514 districts/cities from January 2021 to December 2022. The results show that the first dose of vaccination significantly reduces …