2019冠状病毒病大流行期间老年人的自我评价、宗教应对和心理健康的种族差异

Older adults from minority groups, especially those with pre‐existing health conditions, have been generally considered the most vulnerable to the COVID‐19. Due to greater health disadvantages prior to the pandemic, its adverse health impact in terms of mortality has been disproportionately higher on Blacks than Whites. The existing health disadvantages and worsening economic conditions due to the pandemic are likely to be anxiety‐inducing that could adversely impact the mental health of Black older adults. Existing studies conducted in the pre‐pandemic era have documented paradoxical findings on race differences in later life psychological well‐being. Even with significant structural disadvantages, Black older adults tended to report significantly better psychological well‐being (e.g., lower depressive symptoms) than White adults. The racial differences in coping mechanisms have been cited as an explanation for such paradoxical findings. Based on our national web‐based survey (N=1764, aged 50 years or older), we examined race differences in coping resources such as religious coping and self‐appraisal and their impacts on anxiety and depressive symptoms. We documented greater concerns about the personal impacts of the pandemic among Blacks than their White counterparts. The greater concerns about the pandemic were associated with poorer psychological well‐being outcomes. Yet Blacks reported fewer depressive symptoms and lower anxiety than Whites. Our study finds subjective religiosity, religious coping, and emotional support to be responsible for better psychological well‐being among Blacks than Whites. Our study highlights policy implications of coping resources for racial differences in later life psychological well‐being.