Profiling COVID‐related experiences in the United States with the Epidemic‐Pandemic Impacts Inventory: Linkages to psychosocial functioning

Abstract

Abstract The COVID‐19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the lives of individuals, families, and communities around the world with constraints on multiple aspects of daily life. The purpose of the present study was to identify specific profiles of pandemic‐related experiences and their relation to psychosocial functioning using the 92‐item Epidemic‐Pandemic Impacts Inventory (EPII). Data were collected as part of a cross‐sectional, online survey of adults (18+) residing in the Northeast region of the United States (N = 652) and recruited via online advertisements. Person‐centered latent class analysis (LCA) was applied to 38 pandemic‐related experiences that showed a significant bivariate correlation with perceived stress. Measures of psychosocial risk were also obtained. Results revealed five unique profiles of respondents based on patterns of pandemic‐related experiences. Three profiles representing about 64% of the sample were characterized by moderate to high exposure to adverse experiences during the pandemic and were more likely to screen positive for depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress. These profiles were differentiated by sociodemographic differences, including age, caregiving, and employment status. Two profiles differentiated by age and caregiver status represented about 36% of the sample and were characterized by relatively low exposure to adverse experiences and lower risk for psychosocial impairment. Findings support the EPII as an instrument for measuring tangible and meaningful experiences in the context of an unprecedented pandemic disaster. This research may serve to identify high‐risk subpopulations toward developing public health strategies for supporting families and communities in the context of public health emergencies such as the COVID‐19 pandemic.

Keywords

• COVID‐19
• disaster
• epidemic
• mental health
• pandemic