@article{ref1,
title="State lockdown policies, mental health symptoms, and using substances",
journal="Addictive behaviors",
year="2021",
author="Das, Abhery and Bruckner, Tim A. and Singh, Parvati",
volume="124",
number="",
pages="e107084-e107084",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: Previous literature finds an increase in depressive symptoms, substance use, and suicidal ideation following the COVID-19 pandemic in the US - suicides do not appear to increase. We examine whether 1) state lockdown policies in the US precede an increase in mental health symptoms; and 2) the extent to which using substances amplifies or attenuates the relation. <br><br>METHODS: We specified, as our exposure variable, the timing of state-level lockdown orders. We used, as the outcome variable, the 4-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-4) that measures anxiety and depression symptoms. We utilized the Understanding America Study (UAS), a nationally representative sample of 7,597 adults across 50 states in the US, surveyed biweekly between March 10, 2020 and November 11, 2020. Linear fixed effect analyses controlled for time-invariant individual factors, as well as employment status, household income, and previous mental health diagnosis. <br><br>RESULTS: Regression results indicate an increase in PHQ-4 scores of approximately 1.70 during lockdown, relative to no lockdown (p < 0.05). Relative to no lockdown, an increase in alcohol use corresponds with a 0.08 unit decrease in PHQ-4 scores during lockdown (p < 0.05). <br><br>CONCLUSION: State lockdown policies precede greater mental health symptoms. Increases in consuming alcohol attenuates the relation between state lockdown policies and mental health symptoms. <br><br>RESULTS may portend greater addiction following the pandemic warranting further investigation into utilization of substance use treatment.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0306-4603",
doi="10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107084",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107084"
}