Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Elderly People's Mental Health

Research Project

Research Topic:

To investigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the mental health condition of elderly people 

Chapter 1

Introduction 

The pandemic due to Covid-19 has been responsible for significantly affecting the mental condition of the entire population. The pandemic has now claimed over millions of deaths worldwide, an increasing number of confirmed cases of around 141 million (worldometers, 2021). The highest cases have been recorded in the USA, with 31.9 million cases and 569000 loss in the pandemic. It has been forecasted that the ageing population would be on the rise over the following years, and Covid-19 has been affecting older people at a greater rate due to their decreasing immunity power due to age.  It is estimated that by 2050, one-fifth of the population across the world would only consist of people with an age range above 65 years. The pandemic due to Covid-19 has exposed every human being to increased amounts of stress in a prolonged manner with increased anxiety and depression. This stress is significantly higher among elderly people as their fear of contagion and the fear of social isolation are more significant in them (WHO, 2021). All of these adds to the increasing mental deterioration among elderly people. This research study would focus on analysing the mental health conditions of elderly people and the ways Covid-19 have impacted them. With significant lockdown measures, the mental health of elderly people had been quite negative as they experienced increased feelings of anxiety and stress (Giles, 2021). Furthermore, elderly people had also grown to become exceedingly isolated due to the consistently staying at homes. This, in turn, is also affecting their relationships. In the UK, about 165,000 people had already died since the outbreak. In addition to this, it has also been estimated that in a total of 3,485,700 people in England are affected by the virus, which represents about 6.39% of the population (BBC News, 2022; Yapp et al., 2022).

Aims:

The study would be to research the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on the mental health of elderly people. 

Research objectives:

The collection of objectives that would help in the establishment of the research are as follows: 

1. To investigate the contributing factors, including financial, material and psychological factors, that affected the mental health of elderly people during the pandemic. 

2. To analyse the typical impact of the pandemic situation on the mental health of elderly adults

3. To draw practical conclusions to establish different recommendations to support the ageing group mental problems due to Covid-19. 

Research questions:

The collection of objectives that would help in the establishment of the research are as follows: 

1. What are the contributing factors that include financial, material, and psychological factors that influences the mental health of aged people during the pandemic situation?

2. How the Covid-19 pandemic had been influencing the mental health of elderly adults?

3. What are the strategic recommendations that can support the mental health problems, in effect to the Covid-19 pandemic, of the aging group?

Rationale/Justification for the study

Previous studies on the pandemics that occurred in the past years, like the Ebola, SARS and, now, the Covid-19, have been identified to have a considerable impact on the mental conditions of people. The negative mental impact is due to the developing fear of contracting the dangerous virus and the fear of being separated and isolated from loved ones and feeling lonely and helpless. All of these factors can lead to dramatic consequences like an increase in the number of suicides and depression. The behaviour in terms of committing suicide can be anticipated to be caused due to depression from isolation (Dubey, et al., 2020). The purpose of choosing this topic and conducting this research is that among the several people, the most affected generation is the elderly generation, due to various reasons, which need to be portrayed to learn about the increasing cost the pandemic has on these people. Also, the study in terms of people’s mental health, in general, is limited. Since the problems are very much prevalent among the elderly set of people, the study would help gain better ideas about the mental consequences and propose some recommendations on how to deal with such conditions. 

Precedents and Literature Review

According to Lloyd-Sherlock et al. (2020), studies have revealed that the young people within the population have various sets of equipment to support the schedule of being busy, including internet services, mobile phone facilities, different video games and other different activities. On the other hand, elderly people have limited access to advanced facilities like the internet and mobile phones. A certain limited number of elderly people are accustomed to the online and digital services, which can cause a significant decline in the necessary physical activities and increase overall dependence. 

As per Saladino, et al. (2020), elderly people rely on social needs to a great extent as a part of their support as they need daily liveliness and daily functioning to remain mentally sound and stable is lacking greatly during the pandemic. The online facilities and the digital advancement have provided social support to the extent that it has helped secure a sense of belongingness. However, the increased lack of knowledge in accessing the modern set of technologies has kept away the elderly people in utilising the effectiveness of the digital facilities. The transport limitations and the restrictions of quarantine have led to a decrease in most of the activities of the elderly people like the regular walks in the park, the standard set of meetings, the social care facilities, the decrease in the voluntary services and several other such activities. The restriction of these activities has impacted the mental health of elderly people to a great extent. Also, minimal attention has been focused on the mental health facilities regarding elderly people, and a practical set of interventions would be needed to support the mental health of this segment of people effectively.  

Activities and Timescales

Activities needed to be carried out during the research	Resources	Deliverables	How long will this take
Extensive research on the topic to frame the aim of the research and establish the research objectives.	Secondary resources were used like books, JSTOR articles, open access journals, pdf, authentic websites and online articles.	An in-depth idea regarding the study with the ability to devise further proceeding steps in research.	1 week
Establishing the purpose of the research along with a literature review on the research topic.	Secondary resources were used like books, JSTOR articles, open access journals, pdf, authentic websites and online articles.	An idea about the outcomes along with the idea regarding the implementation of the methods to be established.	2 weeks
Research on finalising the type of data collection method to be implemented.	Reading about the methods from books and other research papers on similar topics.	Effective data collection would be established.	1 week
Sampling to be established using the non-random method of sampling.	The course materials and books.	Proper characteristics and understanding of the objectives.	1weeks
The quantitative method of data collection was chosen to implement the questionnaire survey method. The questionnaires to be distributed among the participants in the sample.	Secondary resources were used like books, JSTOR articles, open access journals, pdf, authentic websites and online articles.	Effective collection of the intended set of data.	2 weeks
Data collected from the participants.	Internet facilities and mobile facilities.	Further proceeding on the analysis in an effective manner.	2 weeks
The data were analysed using the quantitative data analysis method.	Secondary resources were used like books, JSTOR articles, open access journals, pdf, authentic websites and online articles.	Proceeding towards effective results and conclusion.	2 weeks
Working on a set of conclusions and practical recommendations.	Secondary resources were used like books, JSTOR articles, open access journals, pdf, authentic websites and online articles.	Establishment of an effective and reliable research study.	1 week
Proofreading and re-checking on the risk factors.	Internet facilities and mobile facilities.	Eliminate any risk in the research.	1 week

Chapter 2

Research Methodology and Research Process

Research methodology 

Research methodology is defined to be a systematic approach in resolving a research problem by conducting data gathering through the utilisation of different techniques and providing an adequate interpretation of the data collected along with a practical set of conclusions. It is termed as the blueprint of thorough research (Kumar, 2019). The research methodology can be broadly classified under two methods, the qualitative research method and the quantitative research method. The quantitative method collects statistical-based data that is quantifiable, and the qualitative method utilises non-numeric data that needs broad interpretation. This research study would focus on utilising the quantitative method of data collection, which would include close-ended questions and facilitate data collection, which would support statistical interpretation. This method was preferred as it allows the collection of reliable and precise data and is comparatively easy to conduct. Compared with the qualitative method, the quantitative method of data collection is more scientific, focused, fast, acceptable and objective-based (Brannen, 2017). Also, the data collected would be more measurable, more focused on causation, and easily generalised and replicable. 

The data utilised in research to reach practical conclusions are primary and secondary. Primary data is the first-hand data collected directly by the researcher. The secondary data is the second-hand data where the data is taken from the work of other researchers. This research would utilise both kinds of data. In terms of collecting the primary data, the quantitative data collection method would be utilised. For the secondary data, a literature review would be established by utilising research papers, research articles, online websites, different books and open journals. The utilisation of both methods would enhance the reliability of the research since both the data would be aligned to reach practical conclusions. 

Saunders et al. (2012) had proposed the framework of research onion to explain the different aspects required in research to examine and plan effectively to conduct a sound and successful research design. Research onion helps guide the researcher through every step required in the development of an effective research methodology. 

Research Philosophy: According to Saunders et al. (2012), researchers tend to make a series of assumptions in a study, whether in a knowing or an unknowing state, and refers to the research philosophy as “a system combined of beliefs and assumptions in terms of the development of the adequate knowledge”. The positivism approach would be implemented in this research where the view is “factual” knowledge gained through proper observation with necessary measurement is identified to be trustworthy. In this study, the research would be limited to data collection followed by an interpretation by utilising proper objectives. 

This research approach deals with the observable reality that tends to put whole focus on the available data and are not influenced by the biasness of human beings (Alharahsheh and Pius, 2020). However, the main disadvantage of this philosophical theory is that it has high chances for data generalisation, which tends to ignore the intention of individuals. Moreover, it can also be considered that the positivism philosophy is aligned with the deductive model, where the hypothesis will be set quantitatively (Park et al., 2020). Through the implication of this philosophy, the researcher will be to analyse the facts that are already present and accordingly present suitable recommendations. However, the major disadvantage of this philosophy is that it majorly depends experience of a valid knowledge source. Thus, data generalisation becomes one of the main issue. Through this philosophy, the researcher will be able to gain the solid data regarding the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic on elderly people.

Research Approach: The approach that would be applied in this study would be the deductive approach. A series of research papers and previous sets of information would be utilised to establish the deductions and make practical conclusions regarding the primary data. The deductive approach is practical for quantitative methods as it tests the hypothesis, which would be learning about the mental state of the people due to the pandemic. This approach would enhance the reliability of the research, with the analysis being based on the previous research.  

The deductive research approach presents take into consideration the organising framework, which consists of themes that directly relates to the context of the topic. The codes that are initially drawn from the existing literature tends to imply the enquiry topic and how the aims can aid in the conductance of the research process. For explanatory studies, this approach is very important as it tends to validates and test the research questions (Pearse, 2019). The research approach will be useful in forming justified conclusions that are drawn from the survey method and accordingly relate the data to provide recommendations.

Research Strategy: The research strategy can be defined as the step-by-step action in establishing research. In this study, the research strategy would entirely be based on the questionnaire survey where there would be a set of closed questions based on the mental issues faced during the pandemic. The data would be collected through the participants’ response. The survey method is defined to be used to collect data from a group that would be predefined who would help in the process of gaining the information focusing on the topic of interest. The method is also very cost-effective, quick to conduct and easy to implement. 

The survey method is useful as it enhances the chances for the effective formation of individual viewpoints and experiences. Through this method, the researcher will be able to increase the representativeness of the data with or without observer subjectivity. Nonetheless, there always remains a potential risk for misleading of data as respondents might not feel comfortable to answer some of the questions. In addition to this, as the respondents are never fully aware of the reasons for lack of subject, respondents might feel bored to answer the questions. This, will again further lead to misinterpretation from the data findings. However, the only disadvantage of survey method is that it does not explains the research phenomenon as numerical data is being considered. The performed survey will be done on the selected elderly population of the UK to identify the key mental health complications faced by them.

Research Choice: This study on the mental issues among different individuals is based on the mono method, as the only method to be utilised is quantitative data collection. Through the execution of this research method, the researcher will be able to make a justified interpretation of the obtained data and how it influenced the researcher to interpret them.

Time Horizon: The estimated time identified to conduct this project has been around ten weeks as there are a set of steps to be followed and actions to be implemented to collect and analyse the data and interpret them. It is necessary to allocate adequate time to each research step to maintain the effectiveness and accuracy of the project. 

Techniques & procedures

Data collection: The data collection method selected to be implemented in this study is the questionnaire survey. This method is a quantitative data collection method. The survey is a comparatively more straightforward method to be established in the pandemic and is quick. It would include a set of questions developed through literature research and review based on the study’s objectives. 

Sampling: It is the method of choosing participants for detailed research from a more extensive population set with a definite type of method for selecting (Sharma, 2017). The sample is established as the representation of the entire population and its characteristics. It is based on the people receiving care whilst still living at home, as it is considered how the isolation during the Covid-19 lockdowns impacted them more severely. This sample utilises a non-random sampling method, and the target group was limited among the elderly people, age 50 to 70. We will focus on around 15 participants, and the response would be collected through the questionnaire survey, which would be utilised as the primary data in the research. 

Research instruments: Research instruments are the set of tools used in obtaining, measuring and analysing data from different subjects regarding the research topic. It is important to identify a practical set of research instruments that would help maintain the project’s quality, and this study has used a questionnaire survey and consent forms. The consent forms are necessary to help maintain the project’s integrity and implement the data protection abilities. Followed by the consent would be the distribution of the questionnaire, which would have questions based on the study’s objective and would help learn about the impacts the sudden pandemic had on the people’s mental health. 

Data Analysis: Since the study would use the quantitative questionnaire survey method, the analysis method would also be entirely quantitative, defining values with the respondents’ data. The analysis is entirely statistical, and each analysis is provided with a unique numerical value. The interpretation is mainly through graphs and charts, which better understand the data analysis. This study would utilise the collected data through the survey to interpret meaningful information through rational and critical thinking. The quantitative method works on calculating the frequency of responses, allowing the comparison between the frequency of the overall data that would be collected. In interpreting the collected data through graphs, the MS Excel sheets would be used. They help to portray the statistical data effectively and represent the data through graphical representation. MS Excel is a helpful software; its easy access and user-friendly nature making it in better utilisation.

References

Alharahsheh, H.H. and Pius, A. (2020). A review of key paradigms: Positivism VS interpretivism. Global Academic Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2(3), pp.39-43.

BBC News. (2022). Covid-19 in the UK: How many coronavirus cases are there in my area?. [online]. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-51768274 [2nd April, 2022].