Journal of Education and Health Promotion

Psycho‑social and behavioral impact of COVID‑19 on middle‑aged and elderly individuals: A qualitative study

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

. Avinash Chakrawarty
. Piyush Ranjan 1
. Kamal Bandhu Klanidhi
. Divjyot Kaur 2
. Siddharth Sarkar 3
. Anamika Sahu 3
. M. Bhavesh 1
. Upendra Baitha 1
. Arvind Kumar 1
. Naveet Wig 1

1 Department of Medicine All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India

2 Department of Home Sciences, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India,

3 Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India

Abstract
BACKGROUND: COVID‑19 may seem to have an impact on middle‑aged and elderly people.
However, not much is known about the lived experiences of middle‑aged and elderly people during
this pandemic. The study aims to explore psychosocial and behavioral impact of COVID‑19 on the
lives of these individuals.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three focus group discussions and seven in‑depth interviews were
conducted. A format to guide discussions and interviews was made to bring uniformity across groups
and participants. Participants were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling techniques.
Discussions were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis method was used to extract
key conceptual themes.
RESULTS: There were 12 male and 10 female participants included, with a mean age of
62.2 years. Five subcategories identified were: Fear and anxiety, household confinement, lifestyle
modification, preventive practices, and coping strategies. These sub‑categories formed three major
categories‑psychological, social, and behavioral which ultimately led to the emergence of the main
theme that is, COVID‑19 effects on the life of middle‑aged and older individuals.
CONCLUSION: Middle‑aged and elderly people are affected in many ways due to COVID‑19.
Addressing the psycho‑social and behavioral problems can help in the better adjustment to tide
over the pandemic.

Keywords

COVID 19
focus group discussions
focused group discussions
psycho‑social behavioral functioning
qualitative research
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Journal of Education and Health Promotion
Volume 11, Issue 6
July 2021
Pages 1-7

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