The Benefits of Living With Close Others: A Longitudinal Examination of Mental Health Before and During a Global Stressor. (November 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Sisson, Natalie M.; Willroth, Emily C.; Le, Bonnie M.; Ford, Brett Q.
• Is Part Of: Clinical psychological science. Volume 10:Number 6(2022)
• Page Start: 1083
• Page End: 1097
• Publication Date: 2022-11
• Subjects: COVID-19 -- mental health -- well-being -- parenting -- close relationships -- open data -- open materials -- preregistered; Clinical psychology -- Periodicals; 616.89
• DOI: 10.1177/21677026211053320
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2167-7026

Abstract

For better or worse, the people one lives with may exert a powerful influence on one's mental health, perhaps especially during times of stress. The COVID-19 pandemic—a large-scale stressor that prompted health recommendations to stay home to reduce disease spread—provided a unique context for examining how the people who share one's home may shape one's mental health. A seven-wave longitudinal study assessed mental health month to month before and during the pandemic (February through September 2020) in two diverse samples of U.S. adults ( N = 656; N = 544). Preregistered analyses demonstrated that people living with close others (children and/or romantic partners) experienced better well-being before and during the pandemic's first 6 months. These groups also experienced unique increases in ill-being during the pandemic's onset, but parents' ill-being also recovered more quickly. These findings highlight the crucial protective function of close relationships for mental health both generally and amid a pandemic.