Threats to Belonging and Health: Understanding the Impact of the COVID‐19 Pandemic using Decades of Research

Abstract

The COVID‐19 pandemic, an external stressor with multiple stressful sequelae, has fundamentally changed people's lives over multiple years. In this article, we first review research demonstrating that the pandemic has negatively impacted people's sense of belonging and health over time. Next, we draw upon decades of theoretical and empirical work demonstrating that threats to belonging and mental health problems are highly interrelated, with increases in the former driving increases in the latter. We then extend this discussion to physical health, drawing upon a wealth of theoretical and empirical work demonstrating that threats to belonging are a risk factor for longer term health problems and premature mortality. We also highlight potential mechanisms linking threats to belonging and health, with a focus on sleep and immune function. Throughout, we review how pre‐existing vulnerabilities may moderate these processes. We conclude with empirically supported recommendations for policymakers interested in addressing these issues.

Doctoral Students’ Experiences, Self-Efficacy, and Sense of Belonging Related to Academic Writing in an Online Program

“…The limitations of this study relate to the timing, design, and process. This study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, a unique context for studying belonging and a potentially confounding factor, considering the many ways that pandemic-related life shifts impacted belonging [60]. This may have increased students' sense of belonging to the program, which remained a constant factor in students' otherwise disrupted lives.…”

Cultivating a sense of local community: Longitudinal population study on social, psychological, environmental, and technological factors

“…In recent years, concerns about the erosion of perceived community belonging have intensified, with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic serving as a catalyst for more urgent discussions on this issue (Jaremka, Kane, & Bell, 2022; Marzana et al, 2022). As the pandemic imposed physical distancing, it compelled many people to find new ways of connecting, leading to an increased reliance on virtual connectedness and social media as alternative sources of belonging (Latikka, Koivula, Oksa, Savela, & Oksanen, 2022; Lee, Malcein, & Kim, 2021; Marzana et al, 2022).…”