Religion, Covid-19 and mental health

Bahal, Girish and Iyer, Sriya and Shastry, Kishen and Shrivastava, Anand (2023) Religion, Covid-19 and mental health. European Economic Review, 160. p. 104621. ISSN 00142921

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Abstract

Covid-19 and the resulting lockdowns affected various aspects of people’s lives, including their mental health. Using data from an online survey, we investigate the role of religiosity in mediating the effect of Covid-19 on mental health. From February-March 2021, we conducted online surveys in the USA among 5178 individuals. These surveys elicited responses on (i) the incidence of Covid-19 infections among the respondents or their immediate social networks, (ii) religious beliefs and practices, and (iii) mental health. Employing the CES-D scale, which tests for depression in clinical settings, we find that while the incidence of a Covid-19 infection is associated with significantly worse mental health, this negative association is significantly smaller for religious people. We show that the mental health benefits of being religious emanate from the ability to participate in religious activities.

Item Type:	Article
Authors:	Bahal, Girish and Iyer, Sriya and Shastry, Kishen and Shrivastava, Anand
Document Language:	Language English
Subjects:	Philosophy & psychology > Psycholgy Religion > Philosophy & theory of religion Public Health
Divisions:	Azim Premji University - Bengaluru > School of Arts and Sciences
Full Text Status:	Public
URI:	http://publications.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/id/eprint/7013
Publisher URL:	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2023.104621

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