The pandemic has brought the danger of death from epidemiological infection and an unbearable psychological burden for people around the world. Faster spread of the virus; strict isolation measures, COVID-19 has profoundly affected our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors. The consequences of coronavirus on the body have not yet been adequately studied. Still, it is known for sure that the virus affects various systems and organs, as well as mental health. The article by Pillay & Barnes (2020), Psychology and COVID-19: impacts, themes and way forward, taken for analysis, belongs to the field of health psychology. The paper provides many examples that emphasize the importance of psychologists in combating the negative consequences of the pandemic. As is known from the report, some psychologists have been active in the media to help the public deal with quarantine-related stresses and disease-related anxieties (Pillay & Barnes, 2020). What is more, they have expanded assistance options for people struggling with mental health issues. The article clearly and correctly reflects the role of psychologists in health psychology related to the elimination of the consequences of the pandemic.
Pillay & Barnes used current research on the topic to write their paper, with the exception of one paper that dates from 2015 and does not play a significant role as it is supported by more recent research. Interestingly, the authors take into account the psychological state of people amid the pandemic and the impact of this on the social and political spheres. Importantly, scholars have pointed to the uneven impact (both illness and lockdown) of COVID-19 on those in abusive relationships, such as the unemployed or underprivileged, women, migrants, the disabled community, and LGBTQ people (Pillay & Barnes, 2020). COVID-19, like previous crises, has highlighted long-standing social fractures such as poverty, inequality, xenophobia, racism, patriarchy, ableism, and unequal access to healthcare.
As hypotheses, the authors considered the impact of psychological instability on marginalized groups, arguing that it disproportionately affects them compared to the rest. In addition, researchers suggest that psychologists can significantly help with the fight against the pandemic, as their specialization lies in the field of human behavior (Pillay & Barnes, 2020). To confirm the hypotheses put forward, the authors consider various studies on the topic and provide various statistics.
The weakness of the work is that scientists do not conduct independent research but only analyze existing ones. They rely on data from the first months of the pandemic’s rapid spread and assume that the effect will only spread. From an ethical point of view, the Pillay & Barnes article is fully honorable. According to the APA standards, all papers taken by the authors for the study were cited. In addition, the authors have declared no potential conflicts of interest regarding the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article (Pillay & Barnes, 2020). In this way, the researchers paid respect to the authors of the studied studies. Unfortunately, these assumptions have not been confirmed, so more research is needed.
The strength of the article is that Pillay & Barnes explored current issues and provided some recommendations for psychologists to deal with the pandemic crisis. For example, they argue that it is essential to draw attention to under-resourced mental health systems and strengthen partnerships with other sectors and activist organizations (Pillay & Barnes, 2020). In addition, this research can help advance psychologists among those in power to help people in need and contribute to further research.
The studies that the authors took for analysis were conducted among minorities, including racial communities that discriminated against women, LGBT people, and others. It helped the authors confirm their hypotheses, but similar work in this area suggests that everyone was affected by the pandemic without striking exceptions, as the authors claim. The main study on which the article was based was conducted at the Department of Behavioral Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, and Fort Napier Hospital. Psychological reports indicate the epidemic’s impact on children, the public, the elderly, medical staff, and patients (Atalan, 2020). The impact of COVID-19 on the psychology of students is often highlighted. For example, among 15,543 students, a sample in Bangladesh shows that 44.59% suffer from severe anxiety, 48.41% from moderate anxiety, and only 3.82% from mild anxiety (Dhar et al., 2020). The results show that all epidemic-related stressors positively correlate with anxiety levels (El Keshky et al., 2020). The pandemic has brought the danger of death from epidemiological infection and an unbearable psychological burden for all people around the world.
On the other hand, the authors raise the issue of violence, but they do so concerning minorities. Many studies confirm this while indicating that the overall level of violence has increased (Brown et al., 2020). It is equally important to interpret the authors’ paper as a call to address the problems of discrimination and consider the fight against the disease and its consequences as a common plan. If humanity is limited by ethnicity, race, culture, gender, or nationality and origin, it will not be able to survive this pandemic (Yang et al., 2021). Thus, it can be concluded that the study is relevant but, to some extent, incomplete. Analyzing the professional views of other academics on the topic, the research needs to be improved to be completely trustworthy.
References
Atalan, A. (2020). Is the lockdown important to prevent the COVID-19 pandemic? effects on psychology, environment and economy-perspective. Annals of Medicine and Surgery, 56, 38–42. Web.
Brown, S. M., Doom, J. R., Lechuga-Peña, S., Watamura, S. E., & Koppels, T. (2020). Stress and parenting during the global covid-19 pandemic. Child Abuse & Neglect, 110, 104699. Web.
Dhar, B. K., Ayittey, F. K., & Sarkar, S. M. (2020). Impact of Covid‐19 on psychology among university students. Global Challenges, 4(11), 2000038. Web.
El Keshky, M. E., Basyouni, S. S., & Al Sabban, A. M. (2020). Getting through COVID-19: The pandemic’s impact on the psychology of sustainability, quality of life, and the global economy – A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. Web.
Pillay, A. L., & Barnes, B. R. (2020). Psychology and covid-19: Impacts, themes and way forward. South African Journal of Psychology, 50(2), 148–153. Web.
Yang, Q., Young, I. F., Wan, J., & Sullivan, D. (2021). Culturally grounded scapegoating in response to illness and the COVID-19 pandemic. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. Web.