A Cross-Sectional Study Investigating Canadian and Australian Adolescents' Perceived Experiences of COVID-19: Gender Differences and Mental Health Implications

Marie, Riana, Journault, Audrey-Ann, Cernik, Rebecca, Welch, Paul, Lupien, Sonia, McDermott, Brett, Moxon, Joseph V., and Sarnyai, Zoltan (2022) A Cross-Sectional Study Investigating Canadian and Australian Adolescents' Perceived Experiences of COVID-19: Gender Differences and Mental Health Implications. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19 (7). 4407.

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DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19074407

View at Publisher Website: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19074407

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Abstract

The coronavirus (COVID-19) disease pandemic has been associated with adverse psychological outcomes. This cross-cultural study (N = 1326, 71% female) aimed to investigate Canadian and Australian adolescents’ subjective experiences of COVID-19, gender differences, and psychological implications. Mixed-methods analyses were used to examine differences in COVID-19 experiences and mental health outcomes between country and gender in a Canadian (N = 913, 78% fe-male) and an Australian sample (N = 413, 57% female) of adolescents. Canadian adolescents reported increased COVID-19 discussions and more concerns related to their COVID-19 experiences compared to Australian adolescents. Girls consistently reported more concerns related to COVID-19 and poorer psychological outcomes compared to boys. School lockdown for the Canadian sample may have played a role in these country differences. Further, girls might be at significantly more risk for mental health concerns during COVID-19, which should be considered in adolescent mental health initiatives during the pandemic. Although school disruption and separation of peers due to the pandemic likely have a role in adolescent perceived stressors and mental health, the differences between Canadian and Australian adolescents were less clear and future investigations comparing more objective pre-COVID-19 data to current data are needed.


Item ID:	74554
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1660-4601
Keywords:	adolescents, COVID-19, mental health, school, stress
Copyright Information:	Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Date Deposited:	22 Jul 2022 00:44
FoR Codes:	32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3209 Neurosciences > 320999 Neurosciences not elsewhere classified @ 35% 32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3202 Clinical sciences > 320221 Psychiatry (incl. psychotherapy) @ 30% 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5203 Clinical and health psychology > 520301 Clinical neuropsychology @ 35%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2001 Clinical health > 200104 Prevention of human diseases and conditions @ 50% 20 HEALTH > 2003 Provision of health and support services > 200305 Mental health services @ 50%
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