Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people from black and mixed ethnic groups’ mental health in West London: a qualitative study

Abstract

Objectives

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted vulnerable groups’ physical and mental health, especially young people and minority ethnic groups, yet little is known about the crux of their experiences and what support they would like. To address this gap, this qualitative study aims to uncover the effect of the COVID-19 outbreak on young people with ethnic minority backgrounds’ mental health, how this changed since the end of lockdown and what support they need to cope with these issues.

Design

The study utilised semi-structured interviews to conduct a phenomenological analysis.

Setting

Community centre in West London, England.

Participants

Ten 15 min in-person semistructured interviews were conducted with young people aged 12–17 years old from black and mixed ethnic groups who regularly attend the community centre.

Results

Through Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, results indicated that the participants’ mental health was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with feelings of loneliness being the most common experience. However, positive effects were concurrently observed including improved well-being and better coping strategies post lockdown, which is a testament to the young people’s resilience. That said, it is clear that young people from minority ethnic backgrounds lacked support during the COVID-19 pandemic and would now need psychological, practical and relational assistance to cope with these challenges.

Conclusions

While future studies would benefit from a larger ethnically diverse sample, this is a start. Study findings have the potential to inform future government policies around mental health support and access for young people from ethnic minority groups, notably prioritising support for grassroots initiatives during times of crisis.