Detrimental Effects of COVID-19 Measures on Mental Health and Social-Economic Disparities

The COVID-19 pandemic has struck nations worldwide, pushing worldwide health and socioeconomic systems toextreme limits. Various factors, such as drastic alterations in public environments, prolonged quarantine, revenueloss, and anxiety of disease contraction, have caused mental turmoil. Although there was a need to cope with anexcess of psychological strain among the public, post-COVID patients, and those with a previously diagnosedpsychiatric condition, mental health programs faced a substantial decline in services, mirroring the dramatic risein psychological issues. Interestingly, certain coping strategies play protective or deleterious effects on mentalhealth outcomes. Moreover, social media exposure has played a double-edged role in the mental health of thepublic during the pandemic, leaving grounds for further debates. Protean cultural themes have taken center stagein the discussion on social resilience and compliance to COVID-19 measures, driving their impact through certain work ethics, social capital, and public attitudes in different societies. On the other hand, exceedingly risingpoverty rates cemented the deleterious economic impact of the pandemic. Attention has been called to the racialimplications of the pandemic, driving millions of individuals with low socioeconomic position (SEP) and belonging to minority groups out of the paid workforce. Interestingly, we turn attention to an array of elements implicated in this dramatic effect, such as public transport, living arrangements, and health insurance coverage amongthese vulnerable groups. We attempt to address the mechanisms COVID-19 channeled its mental health andsocioeconomic impacts by explaining the risk factors and pave the way for stronger crisis management in thefuture by evaluating the socioeconomic and psychological effects in stark detail.