New Insights in Psychological Processes: Introduction to the Special Issue on COVID-19 and Mental Health

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken an enormous global toll, including loss of life, economic upheaval, and social disruption. This strong induction of effects across both societal and individual levels provides opportunities for testing fundamental assumptions within biopsychosocial phenomena that would not have been otherwise possible—or at least not ethical—through human-induced experimental designs. Our special issue spotlights research within psychological science that has stayed in step with the complex set of events we refer to as “the pandemic.” We review articles with novel approaches that speak to the variable effects of pandemic experiences across different groups of people, the impact of the pandemic on social support and social infrastructures, and the inequities and violations of justice that the pandemic has revealed. We conclude by highlighting future directions for psychological research.