Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic had a profoundly adverse impact on both physical and mental wellbeing across several regions of the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported a 25% increase in the worldwide prevalence of depression and anxiety during the initial year of the pandemic. Certain groups, such as women, older populations, and persons with disabilities, were particularly vulnerable to adverse mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The intersection of two or more of these identities is argued to create more complex and challenging circumstances than individual identities alone. Using the theory of intersectionality as a lens, this study explored the association between depression and gender, age, and disability status, as well as the association between social support and gender, age, and disability status. The study aimed to investigate these phenomena in 152 participants from Doornkop, Soweto, South Africa.
This study employed a quantitative research approach, through the secondary analysis of the Aging and Health Study. The results showed that during the pandemic, depression was higher among persons with disabilities compared to those without disabilities, higher among females compared to males, and more prevalent among persons aged 65-85 years compared to persons aged 50-64 years. The results further demonstrated that females aged 65-85 years with disabilities are the most vulnerable to depression, despite reporting high levels of social support. This finding highlights the need for this group to be closely monitored for depressive symptoms and prioritised in determining what additional support is required to minimise their predisposition to depression.
Key words: depression, disability, gender, age, social support, intersectionality.