TY - JOUR
T1 - Social media conversations reveal large psychological shifts caused by COVID-19’s onset across U.S. cities
AU - Ashokkumar, Ashwini
AU - Pennebaker, James W.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2021 The Authors, some rights reserved;
PY - 2021/9
Y1 - 2021/9
N2 - The current research chronicles the unfolding of the early psychological impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by analyzing Reddit language from 18 U.S. cities (200,000+ people) and large-scale survey data (11,000+ people). Large psychological shifts were found reflecting three distinct phases. When COVID-19 warnings first emerged (“warning phase”), people’s attentional focus switched to the impending threat. Anxiety levels surged, and positive emotion and anger dropped. In parallel, people’s thinking became more intuitive rather than analytic. When lockdowns began (“isolation phase”), analytic thinking dropped further. People became sadder, and their thinking reflected attempts to process the uncertainty. Familial ties strengthened, but ties to broader social groups weakened. Six weeks after COVID-19’s onset (“normalization phase”), people’s psychological states stabilized but remained elevated. Most psychological shifts were stronger when the threat of COVID-19 was greater. The magnitude of the observed shifts dwarfed responses to other events that occurred in the previous decade.
AB - The current research chronicles the unfolding of the early psychological impacts of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by analyzing Reddit language from 18 U.S. cities (200,000+ people) and large-scale survey data (11,000+ people). Large psychological shifts were found reflecting three distinct phases. When COVID-19 warnings first emerged (“warning phase”), people’s attentional focus switched to the impending threat. Anxiety levels surged, and positive emotion and anger dropped. In parallel, people’s thinking became more intuitive rather than analytic. When lockdowns began (“isolation phase”), analytic thinking dropped further. People became sadder, and their thinking reflected attempts to process the uncertainty. Familial ties strengthened, but ties to broader social groups weakened. Six weeks after COVID-19’s onset (“normalization phase”), people’s psychological states stabilized but remained elevated. Most psychological shifts were stronger when the threat of COVID-19 was greater. The magnitude of the observed shifts dwarfed responses to other events that occurred in the previous decade.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85115798068&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85115798068&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1126/sciadv.abg7843
DO - 10.1126/sciadv.abg7843
M3 - Article
C2 - 34550738
AN - SCOPUS:85115798068
SN - 2375-2548
VL - 7
JO - Science Advances
JF - Science Advances
IS - 39
M1 - eabg7843
ER -