International Study Reveals How Covid-19 Has Affected Personal Lives

The insights, published by YouGov, show how people living in 14 countries, including the US and the UK, have been affected personally by the pandemic

A new international survey conducted by YouGov has explored the impact of Covid-19 on the personal lives of people from 14 countries, including the US, UK, Denmark, Italy, Sweden, Hong Kong, Poland, Indonesia, Australia, Germany, Singapore, France, China and the United Arab Emirates. The survey asked people how the coronavirus pandemic has affected them in terms of topics such as family relationships, romantic relationships and mental well-being.

In the UK, 23% of respondents said "Family Relationships have ended or become strained because of coronavirus", compared to 22% in America. 18% of Brits and 17% of Americans also said that "Friendships have ended or become strained because of coronavirus", while 15% of respondents from both countries said Relationships have ended or becoming strained as a result of the pandemic.

The survey also found that people from all 14 nations said they had questioned their faith due to the pandemic. Residents of the UAE, Indonesia and Singapore were most likely to have questioned their faith, while 7% of Americans said their religious faith has become "strained" or "lost entirely" as a result of the pandemic, compared to 3% in the UK.

The study also found that Brits are among the most likely to report that the pandemic has harmed their mental health. 65% of respondents from the UK said the pandemic has had a "negative impact" on their mental health, compared to 63% in Hong Kong, 62% in Italy, 61% in Spain, and 60% in both China and Poland. 56% of American respondents said the pandemic has had a negative impact on their mental health, while only in Germany did more respondents (45%) say the pandemic has had no impact than those who said it had a negative impact (44%).

Summarising the purpose behind the study, YouGov's Lead Data Journalist, Matthew Smith, said that "With COVID-19 having ravaged the planet for the past nine months or so, the toll the disease has taken in terms of lives and money is well-reported. But what is less well known is how the pandemic has affected people’s personal lives."

To see the full data from the study, go to today.yougov.com/topics/health/articles-reports/2020/12/10/covid-19-mental-health-global

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