Specters of Covid-19: Mental Wellbeing and the Life Course, Five Years On

Abstract (English)

Five years ago, daily life around the world was upended when Covid-19 spread around the globe and launched a pandemic. For a period of weeks, months, or even years, large numbers of people in nearly every country in the world altered the way they worked, played, and learned. While life has since returned to “normal” for most, the long tail of Covid is still being assessed. This panel examines how the shocks of Covid-19 impacted long term mental health particularly for those going through key life transitions–what Jennifer Johnson-Hanks calls “vital conjunctures”-- like entering higher education, the workforce, parenthood, and retirement. For some just finding their way in life, the dramatic external shocks associated with Covid pushed them off the paths they were trying to build for themselves, introducing stressors and obstacles that challenged their wellbeing and remade their futures. For others, Covid solidified and clarified their values and goals, changing their long term wellbeing in positive ways while keeping their trajectories intact. Early reports suggested that the biggest impacts on wellbeing would be felt among vulnerable populations who were disproportionately impacted both by the virus itself and the financial and educational disruptions associated with it. This panel will examine how students, young adults, new parents, retirees, and others who faced Covid at vital conjunctures - especially those who are members of vulnerable populations - are coping five years later.