September 11, 2023
On September 7, 2023, Stockton University's William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy published research analyzing the wide-ranging impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on New Jersey residents' mental health, treatment, and outcomes, involving numerous mental health issues.
The results indicated that the pandemic was at least partly responsible for negatively affecting certain mental health issues, including anxiety, depression, stress-related problems, and post-partum depression in New Jerseyans, with 30% of poll respondents saying the COVID-19 pandemic worsened their mental health problems, including those involving alcohol and drug use.
John Froonjian, Director of the Hughes Center, was quoted in a news release saying, "We have heard anecdotally and from some reports that the pandemic hurt mental health in New Jersey . . . This research validates those concerns and documents specific areas of mental health that were affected."
The report confirmed that young people, especially teenagers, experienced the largest increases in anxiety, depression, and related disorders. Those ages 18 to 29 said that the COVID-19 pandemic caused or worsened a mental health problem at a rate of 45%, compared to a rate of 13% among those 65 and older.
Click here to read more on this story, click here to access a news release on this report from Stockton University, and click here to access the full poll results themselves.
