Financial hardship and mental health: A review of this relationship during the COVID-19 pandemic and an exploration of the roles of compassion, self-criticism and self-reassurance

Abstract

A review of the literature investigating the relationship between financial changes due to COVID-19 and mental health was conducted. The review sought to synthesise the existing evidence from longitudinal quantitative studies which have examined the effect of changes in individuals’ financial situations due to COVID-19 on mental health. Information was collected from three databases (PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Web of Science), and study screening, quality assessment and data extraction related to the impact of COVID-19-related financial changes on mental health outcomes was conducted. The majority of included studies were of fair methodological quality. Overall, this review demonstrates that the COVID-19 pandemic increased objective economic impact, financial hardship and subjective financial stress. These adverse changes in people’s financial circumstances due to COVID-19, are associated with worsening mental health outcomes, including anxiety, depression, affect, global mental health and psychological distress. In a longitudinal study the psychological factors of compassion, self-criticism and self-reassurance were explored for their impact on the relationship between financial hardship and mental health. Participants completed measures of financial hardship, the psychological factors and measures of mental health initially and then completed measures of financial hardship and mental health again, three months later. A hierarchical regression analyses indicated that objective financial hardship significantly predicted mental health outcomes. Mediation analyses demonstrated that fears of compassion from others partially mediated the relationships between objective financial hardship and anxiety, depression, stress and suicide cognitions. Fears of compassion to self partially mediated the relationships between objective financial hardship and depression, stress and suicide cognitions, but not anxiety. Fears of compassion to others did not mediate this relationship. Self-criticism and self-reassurance both partially mediated the relationship between objective financial hardship and anxiety, depression, stress and suicide cognitions.

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ORCID for Samantha Ruth Ashworth: orcid.org/0000-0002-7416-7087

ORCID for Thomas Richardson: orcid.org/0000-0002-5357-4281

ORCID for Nick Maguire: orcid.org/0000-0003-4295-8068

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