On Monday, June 20th 2022, the ESRI launched the report 'Disrupted transitions? Young adults and the COVID-19 pandemic'. The report was conducted as part of a research programme with DCEDIY, draws on the Growing Up in Ireland COVID-19 survey to document the disruption to education, employment and day-to-day activities experienced by young adults during the pandemic and the consequences for their mental health. The report was launched by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Dr Roderic O'Gorman, TD. The research shows that the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in poorer mental health among young adults. Using data from the Growing Up in Ireland COVID-19 survey, carried out in December 2020, the findings show that four-in-ten 22-year-old men and over half (55 per cent) of 22-year-old women were classified as depressed. These were much higher figures than two years previously when 22 per cent of men and 31 per cent of women were depressed. Poorer mental health during the pandemic reflected the disruption to young adults’ employment, education and day-to-day activities. Just before the pandemic hit, most (63 per cent) of these 22-year-olds were in full-time education or training and so shifted to remote learning. The vast majority had the electronic devices they needed for remote learning and live online lectures/classes were offered by their institutions. However, around half did not have access to adequate broadband and a quiet place to study, and less than one third (30 per cent) received regular feedback on their work. Over half (57 per cent) found it difficult to study while learning remotely and this was linked to a greater risk of depression. In contrast, those who had more interaction with their institution and the resources they needed to study fared better. Over half (57 per cent) of those working (either full-time or while studying) when the pandemic hit lost their job. Only one-in-six (16 per cent) of the young adults started working remotely or increased the hours they worked from home. Having higher Leaving Certificate grades and being in a professional/managerial job at age 20 appeared to act as some protection against job loss when the pandemic began. Receiving the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) served to shelter these young adults from financial strain following employment loss. Losing a full-time job was linked to poorer mental health, especially for young men. Read the full report on our website: https://www.esri.ie/publications/disr... Read the accompanying press release on our website: https://www.esri.ie/news/the-covid-19... Subscribe to our Monthly Newsletter/Publication and Event notifications: https://www.esri.ie/sign-up-for-the-e...

1. www.esri.ie Informed Policy for a Better Ireland @ESRIDublin
DISRUPTED TRANSITIONS? YOUNG
ADULTS AND THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
DATE
20TH JUNE 2022
VENUE
ONLINE
AUTHORS
EMER SMYTH, ANNE NOLAN

2. BACKGROUND
 COVID-19 pandemic was a major shock to social, economic and educational lives of
young adults
 Occurred at a time when major life transitions are taking place:
─ Further/higher education to work
─ Moving out of family home
─ Forming relationships
 Much of the (early) evidence on the effects of pandemic on young people focused on
younger children and families (Darmody et al., 2020)
─ GUI Cohort ‘98 special COVID-19 survey (carried out in December 2020) aimed to fill this gap
2

3. GUI COVID-19 SURVEYS
 Short web-based survey with a short window for completion in December 2020
(coincided with pre-Christmas 2020 easing of restrictions)
 Cohort ‘98
─ Most respondents were 22 years of age at the time of the survey
─ Response rate of 33 per cent (n=2,277)
─ Data reweighted to account for attrition
 Data collected on experience during the pandemic:
─ Disruption to employment, education and social activities
─ Health behaviours and wellbeing
─ Changes to financial situation, living arrangements
─ COVID-19 (infection, sources of information, etc.)
3

4. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
4
 Job Loss
─ Which groups of young adults were more likely to experience job loss?
─ What were the consequences of job loss for their wellbeing?
 Disruption to education and social activities
─ How did the pandemic impact on young adults’ educational experiences?
─ How did the pandemic-related restrictions impact on contact with friends and family and on
involvement in structured sports and cultural activities?
 Impact on mental health and wellbeing
─ Which groups of young adults experienced an increase in depressive symptoms between the ages of 20
and 22 years of age?
─ What aspects of the pandemic experience had the greatest impact on the prevalence of depressive
symptoms? What protective and risk factors were evident?

5. JOB LOSS
5

6. STATUS PRIOR TO PANDEMIC (FEBRUARY 2020)
6
 GUI COVID-19 survey allows us to distinguish different types of job loss (main job vs.
term-time job)
 In February 2020:
Education –
47%
Employment
– 32%
Both – 16%
NEET – 5%

7. TYPES OF DISRUPTION TO EMPLOYMENT
7
36
21
17 16
13
10
16
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Lost full-
time job
Lost term-
time job
Other job
loss or
reduction
Working
remotely
Increased
work
hours
Other
change
No impact
%

8. FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH JOB LOSS
8
 Of those working in February 2020, two-thirds were working ‘full-time’ (i.e., work was
their main activity), while one-third were combining work with study (i.e., term-time
job)
─ Just over 40 per cent of with a main job reporting losing their job, vs. nearly 60 per cent of those with a
term-time job
Loss of main job Loss of term-time job
Male - -ve
Family SES - -
Lone parent family +ve -
Urban -ve -ve
LC points -ve -ve
Skilled manual job at 20 +ve -
Models also control for migrant status, chronic illness/disability, family financial strain at 20
years of age, perceived job security at 20 years of age

9. FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH FINANCIAL STRAIN
9
 Models show that financial strain at age
22 was greater for:
─ Females
─ Those from lower SES backgrounds
─ Those from lone parent families
─ Those from migrant backgrounds
─ Those who experienced financial strain at age
20
─ NEET
─ Those who were working in February 2020 and
lost their main job
─ Those not in receipt of PUP
8.5
7.2
11.1
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Family (age 20) Own (age 20) Own (age 22)
%

10. DISRUPTION TO EDUCATION
10

11. DISRUPTION TO EDUCATION
11
 Relatively little research on effects of disruption to further/higher education
 Nearly two-thirds of cohort were either in full-time education, or combining work and
study
 At time of survey, higher education institutions were continuing to provide remote
learning
 Survey asked about:
─ conditions for learning (e.g., broadband, quiet place to study)
─ contact with educational institution (e.g., provision of live/online classes)
─ learning experience (e.g., difficulty studying)

12. HOME CONDITIONS FOR LEARNING
12
91
50
46
0 20 40 60 80 100
Access to laptop/PC
Adequate broadband
Quiet place to study
% reporting ‘always true’

13. PROVISION BY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
13
34
30
44
74
10
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Regular contact with classmates
Received feedback
Sent links to online resources
Provided live online classes
Provided on-campus classes
% reporting ‘always true’

14. LEARNING EXPERIENCE
14
58
27
23 22
12
3
21
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
Found it
difficult to
study
Did not do
exams
Did not get
work
experience
Did not do
as well as
expected
Enjoyed
learning on
own
Dropped
out of
course
None of
above
%

15. DISRUPTION TO DAY-TO-DAY ACTIVITIES
15

16. DOING THESE ACTIVITIES LESS (%)
16
80
19
37
32
43
21
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
See friends face-to-face
See boy/girlfriend
Sports/exercise
Organised cultural activities
Spend time outdoors
Sleep
%

17. DOING THESE ACTIVITIES MORE (%)
17
13
15
44
66
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Smoke/vape
Drink alcohol
Eat junk food/sweets
Informal screentime
%

18. IMPACT ON MENTAL HEALTH OF 22-YEAR-OLDS
18

19. % OVER THE DEPRESSION THRESHOLD (CES-D SCALE)
19
22
41
31
55
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
20 years 22 years
%
Men Women

20. BACKGROUND FACTORS, PANDEMIC EXPERIENCES AND DEPRESSION
20
Male Female
Family under financial strain (at 20) Family under financial strain (at 20)
Urban Urban
NEET or dual status prior to pandemic NEET or dual status prior to pandemic
Lost main job Remote working (protective)
Difficulty studying Difficulty studying
Depressed at 20 Depressed at 20

21. FAMILY AND PEER FACTORS AT 20 AND DEPRESSION
21
Male Female
Can rely on friends (protective) Can rely on friends (+)
Talked to boy/girlfriend about personal feelings
(protective)
Less face-to-face contact with friends
Less contact with boy/girlfriend Less contact with boy/girlfriend
How well get on with family (protective)
Talk to father about personal feelings (protective)

22. SOCIAL ACTIVITIES, RISKY BEHAVIOURS AND DEPRESSION
22
Male Female
Team sports at 20 (protective)
Less time on sports during pandemic
Less time outdoors Less time outdoors
Drinking more Drinking more
Sleeping less Sleeping less
Eating more junk food/sweets
More informal screentime More informal screentime (p<.10)
Avoidance coping strategies at 20 (taking to
the bed; drinking)
Avoidance coping strategies at 20 (taking to
the bed)
Self-esteem (protective) Self-esteem (protective)

23. CONCLUSIONS
23
 High prevalence of depressive symptoms during the pandemic, especially among
women and those who were already vulnerable (family financial strain, NEET)
 Associated with disruptions to education, employment and social activities
 Different effects of risk and protective factors by gender
 Importance of pandemic employment supports for this cohort

24. IMPLICATIONS FOR POLICY
24
 Variable access to learning resources and institutional support for students highlight the importance of
accelerated rollout of high-quality broadband, and support for institutions in incorporating
remote/hybrid learning, feedback and assessment into existing courses
 Loss of face-to-face contact with friends was not compensated for by online contact – implications for
remote/hybrid studying and working
 Risk that young adults won’t reengage in sports and cultural activities after pandemic disruption –
importance of policy efforts to encourage involvement
 Potential for broader health promotion (focusing on reducing drinking, smoking and unhealthy diet) to
have a positive spill-over effect on mental health difficulties
 Pandemic has lengthened already long waiting lists for mental health services in Ireland – potential
scarring effects for young adults; urgency of supports given level of mental health difficulties