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Different trajectories of depression, anxiety and anhedonia symptoms in the first 12 months of the COVID-19 pandemic in a UK longitudinal sample

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2022

Christine E. Parsons Open the ORCID record for Christine E. Parsons [Opens in a new window] ,
Kirstin L. Purves ,
Megan Skelton ,
Alicia J. Peel ,
Molly R. Davies ,
Fruhling Rijsdijk ,
Shannon Bristow ,
Thalia C. Eley ,
Gerome Breen  and
Colette R. Hirsch
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Christine E. Parsons*
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Medicine, Interacting Minds Center, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
Kirstin L. Purves
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, King's College London, London, UK
Megan Skelton
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, King's College London, London, UK
Alicia J. Peel
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK
Molly R. Davies
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, King's College London, London, UK
Fruhling Rijsdijk
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK
Shannon Bristow
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK
Thalia C. Eley
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, King's College London, London, UK
Gerome Breen
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, King's College London, London, UK
Colette R. Hirsch
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
Katherine S. Young
Affiliation:
Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, SE5 8AF, UK NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre, King's College London, London, UK
*
Author for correspondence: Christine E. Parsons, E-mail: christine.parsons@clin.au.dk
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Abstract

Background

While studies from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic have described initial negative effects on mental health and exacerbating mental health inequalities, longer-term studies are only now emerging.

Method

In total, 34 465 individuals in the UK completed online questionnaires and were re-contacted over the first 12 months of the pandemic. We used growth mixture modelling to identify trajectories of depression, anxiety and anhedonia symptoms using the 12-month data. We identified sociodemographic predictors of trajectory class membership using multinomial regression models.

Results

Most participants had consistently low symptoms of depression or anxiety over the year of assessments (60%, 69% respectively), and a minority had consistently high symptoms (10%, 15%). We also identified participants who appeared to show improvements in symptoms as the pandemic progressed, and others who showed the opposite pattern, marked symptom worsening, until the second national lockdown. Unexpectedly, most participants showed stable low positive affect, indicating anhedonia, throughout the 12-month period. From regression analyses, younger age, reporting a previous mental health diagnosis, non-binary, or self-defined gender, and an unemployed or a student status were significantly associated with membership of the stable high symptom groups for depression and anxiety.

Conclusions

While most participants showed little change in their depression and anxiety symptoms across the first year of the pandemic, we highlight the divergent responses of subgroups of participants, who fared both better and worse around national lockdowns. We confirm that previously identified predictors of negative outcomes in the first months of the pandemic also predict negative outcomes over a 12-month period.

Keywords

AnhedoniaCOVID-19 pandemiclockdown restrictionstrajectory modelling
Type
Original Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 53 , Issue 14 , October 2023 , pp. 6524 - 6534
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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