Abstract
Schizophrenia and social isolation - lived experiences during the covid-19 pandemic.
People living with schizophrenia are among the most vulnerable to social isolation, a major risk factor associated mental health deterioration. Unfortunately, limited phenomenological research exists exploring lived experiences and meaning-making of social isolation among people living with schizophrenia during the covid-19 lockdowns. Specifically, within the unique South African context.
Available literature presented a confounding picture regarding such experiences and their influence upon mental health. Some studies reported significant disruptions to daily life and social relationships, while others described little to no disruption. Accordingly, the rationale for this study rested upon addressing the contextual and theoretical gaps identified to answer the question: How did people living with schizophrenia make meaning of their experiences of social isolation during the SA covid-19 pandemic?
This study followed an interpretive phenomenological approach. Comprising semi-structured interviews with seven participants residing within an assisted living facility in Gauteng, South Africa. Thereafter, interview transcriptions were subjected to a detailed analysis to identify and interpret themes associated with participant’s experiential meaning-making around social isolation and the covid-19 lockdowns.
This study found the extent to which participants experienced a perceived disruption to daily routines, loneliness, limited social support, or social isolation influenced whether they viewed lockdowns positively, negatively, or ambivalently. Participants that experienced the above disruptions simultaneously reported a deterioration in mental health. Specifically, anxiety and depressive symptomology.
This study offers a unique insight into an understudied phenomenon related to experiences of social isolation during the covid-19 pandemic within the South African context. It can serve as the basis for future phenomenological research to broaden our empirical understanding; and enhance our readiness to provide better mental health care services in the face of significant future environmental disruptions.
Keywords: Covid-19; Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis; Lived Experience; Lockdown; Mental Health; Schizophrenia; Social Isolation; South Africa.