Y. Heather Lee, PhD - Effects of social support on depression risk

Journal article

Karmel W. Choi, Y. Lee, Zhaowen Liu, D. Fatori, J. Bauermeister, Rebecca A Luh, C. Clark, A. Brunoni, S. Bauermeister, J. Smoller
medRxiv, 2022

Semantic Scholar DOI PubMedCentral PubMed

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APA Click to copy
Choi, K. W., Lee, Y., Liu, Z., Fatori, D., Bauermeister, J., Luh, R. A., … Smoller, J. (2022). Effects of social support on depression risk during the COVID-19 pandemic: What support types and for whom? MedRxiv.

Chicago/Turabian Click to copy
Choi, Karmel W., Y. Lee, Zhaowen Liu, D. Fatori, J. Bauermeister, Rebecca A Luh, C. Clark, A. Brunoni, S. Bauermeister, and J. Smoller. “Effects of Social Support on Depression Risk during the COVID-19 Pandemic: What Support Types and for Whom?” medRxiv (2022).

MLA Click to copy
Choi, Karmel W., et al. “Effects of Social Support on Depression Risk during the COVID-19 Pandemic: What Support Types and for Whom?” MedRxiv, 2022.

BibTeX Click to copy

@article{karmel2022a,
  title = {Effects of social support on depression risk during the COVID-19 pandemic: What support types and for whom?},
  year = {2022},
  journal = {medRxiv},
  author = {Choi, Karmel W. and Lee, Y. and Liu, Zhaowen and Fatori, D. and Bauermeister, J. and Luh, Rebecca A and Clark, C. and Brunoni, A. and Bauermeister, S. and Smoller, J.}
}

Abstract

Background. Rates of depression have increased worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic. One known protective factor for depression is social support, but more work is needed to quantify the extent to which social support can reduce depression risk during the COVID-19 pandemic, and specifically to identify which types of support are most helpful during a pandemic, and who might benefit most. Methods. Data were obtained from participants in the All of Us Research Program who responded to the COVID-19 Participant Experience (COPE) survey administered monthly from May 2020 to July 2020 (N=69,066, 66% female). Social support was assessed using 10 items from the RAND Medical Outcome Study (MOS) Social Support Survey which measures emotional/informational support (e.g., someone to confide in or talk to about yourself or your problems), positive social interaction support (e.g., someone to do things with to help you get your mind off things), and tangible support (e.g., someone to help with daily chores if sick). Elevated depression symptoms were defined based on having a moderate-to-severe ([≥]10) score on the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). Mixed-effects logistic regression models were used to separately test the association between overall social support and its subtypes with depression, adjusting for age, sex, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic factors. We then tested interactions between social support and effect modifiers: age, sex, pre-pandemic mood disorder, and pandemic-related stressors (e.g., financial insecurity). Results. Approximately 16% of the sample experienced elevated depressive symptoms. Overall social support was associated with significantly reduced odds of depression (adjusted odds ratio, aOR [95% CI]=0.44 [0.42-0.45]). Among subtypes, emotional/informational support (aOR=0.42 [0.41-0.43]) and positive social interactions (aOR=0.43 [0.41-0.44]) showed the largest protective associations with depression, followed by tangible support (aOR=0.63 [0.61-0.65]). Sex, age, and pandemic-related financial stressors were statistically significant modifiers of the association between social support and depression. Conclusions. Individuals reporting higher levels of social support were at reduced risk of depression during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The perceived availability of emotional support and positive social interactions, more so than tangible support, was key. Individuals more vulnerable to depression (e.g., women, younger individuals, and those experiencing financial stressors) may particularly benefit from enhanced social support, supporting a precision prevention approach.