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1. Global Contexts: How Countries Shape the COVID-19 Experience of Amish and Mennonite Missionaries Abroad

   https://doi.org/10.3390/rel12100790  

   Corcoran, Katie E.; Stein, Rachel E.; Colyer, Corey J.; Mackay, Annette M.; Guthrie, Sara K. (October 2021, Religions)

   Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants’ moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restrictions. Countries implementing more regulations, those with limited access to healthcare, food, and other essential services, and those with past histories of epidemics may all shape residents’ perceptions. Drawing on the case of American Amish and Mennonite missionaries stationed abroad, we content-analyzed accounts of the pandemic from an international Amish and Mennonite correspondence newspaper. We found that the missionaries’ perceptions of the pandemic and governmental restrictions differ from those of their U.S. counterparts, which suggests that context likely shapes how religious moral worldviews express themselves concerning public health interventions. 

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2. A Longitudinal Study of Student Mental Health during the Course of the COVID-19 Pandemic

   Danowitz, Andrew; Beddoes, Kacey (June 2023, 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)

   The early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States caused unprecedented disruption to engineering students and society-at-large. Residential students suddenly found themselves forced off-campus and into a new regime of online learning. On top of this, students faced pandemic related uncertainty about their health and the health of their loved ones, restrictions on social life, and the privations of a stuttering economy. It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic the engineering student population saw large increases in incidences of depression and other psychological conditions. While COVID-19 continues to be a concern, many of the restrictions and precautions associated with the early outbreak have been relaxed. Most engineering programs are back to in person learning, and strict COVID-testing regimes, mask mandates, and limits on large public gatherings have been largely phased out. With academia and society slowly adjusting to this “new normal,” it is important to know whether and to what extent mental health of engineering students has changed over the course of the pandemic. This work explores this question by analyzing longitudinal data collected at four times from 2019-2021. We analyze how the prevalence of different conditions changed with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and whether they have returned to pre-pandemic levels. Among other results, we found statistically significant increases were observed in total depressive disorders between our initial sample (Fall 2019) and a sample taken immediately post-COVID (Spring 2020). While measured rates of depression decreased between Spring 2020 and Fall 2021, it was not statistically significant, potentially indicating that the student population is still recovering on this metric. Conversely our data shows a statistically significant drop in moderate-to-major psychological distress between our Fall 2019 pre-pandemic sampling and our Fall 2021 post-pandemic sampling indicating, potentially indicating an improvement in overall mental health. Breaking the data down by gender, no significant changes were observed across any measure during the four sample periods for women respondents. Men, however, showed a significant increase in depressive disorders from Fall 2019 to Spring 2020; and a significant decrease in depressive disorders from Spring 2020 to Fall 2021. 

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3. Effects of COVID-19 on Engineering Students’ Baseline Stress

   Danowitz, Andrew; Beddoes, Kacey (December 2020, Proceedings of the AAEE2020 Conference)

   null (Ed.)

   CONTEXT With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resulting response from universities, engineering students find themselves in an unprecedented situation. In addition to stressors related to the curriculum, residential students across the United States are being asked to relocate away from campus and engage in distance learning. At the same time, social distancing requirements are limiting students’ ability to socialize, procure food and supplies, exercise, and remain employed and financially solvent. Some students will fall ill while others face the prospect of sick family members, and even deaths in the family. Prior research suggests that individuals living through this pandemic are likely to face stress, uncertainty, and fear that affects their mental health and academic performance for years to come. PURPOSE OR GOAL The purpose of this study was to understand the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting engineering students’ mental wellness, specifically stress, and how the effects differ for different groups of students. The research questions addressed are: 1) What effects has the pandemic had on baseline stress levels, and how do those vary by demographic group? 2) What effects has the pandemic had on quality of life, such as sleep habits and financial security, and how do those vary by demographic group? METHODS An online survey was conducted in the United States in May and June of 2020. More than 800 4-year engineering students who represented many engineering disciplines and universities responded. The survey used a modified version of the Holmes-Rahe Social Readjustment Rating Scale, which is a widely used and validated instrument to measure the effects of certain life events on stress. The data was analysed to determine the average increase in stress levels for students resulting from COVID-19, and which demographic groups have seen the most negative impact. We also report on which stress-inducing life-events were experienced most. OUTCOMES Latinx individuals and international students report statistically significantly higher levels of stress than the baseline population. Engineering students from other historically excluded identities, however,are not facing statistically significantly worse stress than their peers from historically over represented identities. Veterans fare better than the majority population on this metric.The data also indicates that different groups are more likely to experience different negative life-events because of COVID. CONCLUSIONS No previous research has examined the impacts of a global pandemic on engineering student stress and mental wellness. Our findings show that stress and mental wellness need to be understood intersectionally and that some underrepresented groups are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Understanding the impacts on students can help universities strategize and allocate limited resources most effectively to support student success. KEYWORDS Mental wellness; COVID-19; stress 

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4. Religious Ritual Compliance with COVID‐19 Mandates in Plain Communities: A Case Study of Amish Obituaries and Funeral Practices

   https://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12889  

   Corcoran, Katie E.; Colyer, Corey J.; Mackay, Annette M.; Stein, Rachel E. (November 2023, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion)

   Abstract Measures to limit COVID‐19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street‐level bureaucracy theory, we examine the role of service providers who function as street‐level bureaucrats in shaping how religious groups respond to public policy mandates. Using the case of funeral rites in Old Order Amish churches, we content‐analyzed Old Order Amish obituaries from an Amish correspondence newspaper and interviewed funeral directors that serve the Amish. We found that the content of obituaries changed to incorporate COVID‐19 mitigation strategies due to requirements from some funeral homes. We also found that funeral directors used discretion to interpret health mandates. 

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5. Examining disparities in the early adoption of Covid-19 personal mitigation across family structures

   https://doi.org/10.3934/publichealth.2022041  

   Harris, Casey T.; Fitzpatrick, Kevin; Niño, Michael; Thelapurath, Priya; Drawve, Grant (January 2022, AIMS Public Health)

   The United States' response to the COVID-19 pandemic has relied heavily on personal mitigation behaviors versus centralized governmental prevention strategies, especially early in the virus's outbreak. This study examines how family structure shapes mitigation, focusing on the intersectional effects of gender, marital status, and the presence of children while accounting for differences in worry about infection from the virus. Using data from a national survey of 10,368 United States adults early in the pandemic (March 2020), survey-weighted logistic regression models show important differences in the likelihood of personal mitigation adoption across family structures. Unmarried women with children were most likely to report personal mitigation behaviors, including washing hands more frequently and avoiding social gatherings. Our findings highlight the differential impacts of the pandemic on those living in specific family circumstances. 

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