Case (Research Blog 8)

 The chief example I plan to use to illustrate my argument about trauma amid the pandemic is a study about the prevalence of PTSD amid students in Wuhan, China; the students at the forefront of the pandemic.  

College students living through the pandemic in Wuhan faced a range of issues including: 

- infection with covid-19, concern for one's health or the health of family members

- concern for family finances (pandemic created an economic crisis)

- remote learning difficulties - little interaction with peers, professors; disturbing learning environment (moving back home with family who are all also working/learning from home)

- problems adapting to and coping with the 'new world' we have entered

-increased risk of exposure to domestic violence

-decline of social support

The study found that there is a high prevalence of post-traumatic stress symptoms among college students. Those who had been diagnosed with the virus had a higher rate of traumatization. 

708 of 4355 participants (16.3%) met the criteria for PTSD symptoms.

Researchers found that the prevalence of depression among the public in Taiwan was 3.7% after the SARS epidemic. Based on this, it appears that the COVID19 pandemic has had a greater psychological impact than the SARS epidemic.

According to the study, people living in areas severely effected by the pandemic are prone to developing conditions related to trauma, including post traumatic stress disorder - this can be applied directly to the US because the devastation we have seen as a result of the virus is similar to that of China.