COVID-19 Research

The Kinsey Institute’s Traumatic Stress Research Consortium explored how stressful times like the COVID-19 pandemic affect the mind and the body in diverse ways, and how to stay connected in times of isolation and uncertainty.

Research Team

Dr. Stephen Porges
Distinguished University Scientist, Kinsey Institute;
Founding Director, Kinsey Institute Traumatic Stress Research Consortium

Dr. Jacek Kolacz, Managing Director and Chief Scientist, Kinsey Institute Traumatic Stress Research Consortium
Research Assistant Professor, Ohio State College of Medicine

Dr. Gregory Lewis
Assistant Research Scientist, Kinsey Institute

Kate Wolovsky
Research Fellow, Kinsey Institute;
President and Co-Founder, WiseWays

Olivia Roath, Research Assistant, Kinsey Institute

This online survey examined how COVID-19 and related social distancing measures affected people's friendships, including communicating with friends, new ways of socializing, and the role of friends during the pandemic.  

Criteria for participants was:

• 18 years of age or older
• Be living in an area subject to social distancing orders or guidelines (also known as quarantine or lockdown) OR have lived in an area subject to social distancing within the past 6 months
• Have access to the Internet, AND
• Consent to participate in the study

Research Team

Dr. Jessica Hille, Assistant Director for Education, The Kinsey Institute

The purpose of this study was to better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic and the social distancing associated with it affected mental health, substance use, and relationship conflict (including intimate partner violence) among adults in the United States. We evaluated a variety of factors, including experiences in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, which might contribute to vulnerability and resilience during this challenging time. This information can help to inform and target psychological interventions for those who are struggling with mental health challenges due to the pandemic and to develop preventative approaches to keep individuals safe and healthy during future disasters.

Methods

Participation was open to all adults age 18 and over who lived in the United States. Recruitment began in mid-April 2020 through social media and through advertisements and postings on websites and listservs.

Participants completed an online questionnaire in which they provided information about their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, their relationship (if they were in one), and their demographics. They also completed validated measures of relationship conflict (if relevant); depression, anxiety, and stress; feeling of distress in relations to the pandemic, substance use, and past history of distressing or traumatic experiences.

Participants had the option to provide their contact information for follow-up questionnaires and interviews. Researchers followed up with a select group of volunteers over the next 6 months to evaluate how their mental health, relationship conflict, and substance use changed (or remained the same) as social distancing decreased and stay-at-home orders were lifted.

Research Team

Dr. Zoë Peterson, Director of the Kinsey Institute Sexual Assault Research Initiative and faculty member in Counseling and Educational Psychology

Dr. Ellen Vaughan, faculty member in Counseling and Educational Psychology

The purpose of this study, conducted by the Kinsey Institute Condom Use Research Team, was to determine how the coronavirus pandemic affected marital quality, sexual behavior, reproductive planning and health, and individual and family well-being. Experiences related to COVID-19 were assessed as well as any precautions taken to prevent COVID-19 transmission and acquisition.

For Study 1, participants were comprised of a national sample of 1000 married individuals, ages 30-50 years, recruited from Qualtrics panels. A follow-up questionnaire (Study 2) was administered to determine any change of major study variables. Data collection for Study 1 began in mid-April, 2020.

Research Team

Dr. William L. Yarber, Senior Scientist, The Kinsey Institute; Provost Professor, IU School of Public Health-Bloomington

Dr. Stephanie A. Sanders, Senior Scientist, The Kinsey Institute; Provost Professor, Department of Gender Studies, IU-Bloomington

Dr. Robin R. Milhausen, Senior Research Fellow, The Kinsey Institute; Professor of Human Sexuality and Family Relations, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada

Dr. Cynthia A. Graham, Senior Research Fellow, The Kinsey Institute; Professor of Sexual and Reproductive Health, University of Southampton, UK

Dr. Richard A. Crosby, Senior Research Fellow, The Kinsey Institute; Good Samaritan Endowed Professor, College of Public Health, University of Kentucky

Dr. John M. Kennedy, Senior Research Director, Center for Survey Research, IU-Bloomington

Dr. Karen B. Vanterpool, Graduate Research Assistant, The Kinsey Institute; Research Associate, Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention, IU-Bloomington

The purpose of this study was to better understand mental wellbeing, physical health, and coping of adults during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how previous experiences affect coping. Understanding how people felt and behaved during this situation is important so that we can plan for both positive and negative outcomes, create appropriate resources, and prepare for events like this in the future.

Research Team

Dr. Sue Carter, Senior Research Scientist, The Kinsey Institute

Dr. Jacek Kolacz, Research Assistant Professor, Ohio State College of Medicine

Dr. Gregory Lewis, Assistant Research Scientist, The Kinsey Institute

Dr. Stephen Porges, Distinguished University Scientist;The Kinsey Institute

The purpose of this study was to better understand the romantic and sexual lives of adults during the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic (2020). This virus and the resulting societal changes were new to all of us, and this event may have pushed people together or apart in ways that we’ve not previously seen or studied. Developing a better understanding of how people feel and behave in emergency contexts is important for both research and clinical practice, in order to plan for both positive and negative outcomes and prepare for events like this in the future.

Participation was voluntary and open. Participants were asked to complete online surveys about their background (e.g., education level, income, gender); thoughts and behaviors related to COVID-19 (e.g., social distancing behaviors, stress and worry); personality, attachment style, and view on relationships; sexual behavior recently and over the last year; and the quality of their current romantic and sexual relationships, if partnered. Being in a relationship or currently being sexually active was not a requirement for participation. 

Methods - Data Collection

Data were collected as part of the “Sex and Relationships in the Time of COVID-19” study. Participants were recruited using an Internet-based snowball sampling method. Data collection began in March 2020. Initial recruitment was conducted through standardized messages posted to The Kinsey Institute’s public social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn). Initial recruitment posts were then widely shared and reposted by other social media users (e.g., individuals, organizations, researchers) including by those participating, resulting in a regionally and demographically diverse participant pool, albeit not representative of any particular nation. All data were collected over the Internet.

The survey tool included a variety of unique and validated measures, and was housed on Qualtrics using a licensed and protected custom user account. After accessing the survey link, prospective participants were asked to read and acknowledge a study information sheet that included a brief description of the study and how to enter an incentive raffle for gift card compensation. Participants were told that their responses were part of an initial survey study, and that if they chose to provide contact information they would be invited to participate in additional survey waves for longitudinal assessment, with the ability to enter additional incentive raffles. Follow-up assessments were conducted two and four weeks after the date of initial survey completion. In the study confidentiality statement, participants were informed that they would only be contacted for follow-up data collection, and that any identifying information would be stored separately from their research response data. All research procedures were approved by Indiana University’s Institutional Review Board.

Research Team

Dr. Justin Garcia, Acting Executive Director, The Kinsey Institute & IU Bicentennial Professor

Dr. Amanda Gesselman, Anita Aldrich Endowed Research Scientist & Associate Director for Research, The Kinsey Institute

Dr. Justin Lehmiller, Research Fellow, The Kinsey Institute

Dr. Kristen Mark, Associate Professor & Director of the Sexual Health Promotion Lab, University of Kentucky