Just a few weeks into the nationwide lockdown, the British public is still struggling to adjust to what everyone is calling the ‘new normal’. We all know that Brits can’t resist a bit of sunshine, and the uncharacteristically warm weather is making it particularly difficult for some to respect the current guidelines.
Unfortunately, there will always be a proportion of selfish people who ruin it for the rest of us – like the kids at school that simply can’t behave and it results in all of us missing break time. But what happens when we start focusing on the people who are staying inside – how are they adapting their day to day lives to cope with what’s happening?
One study is looking at how people around the world are being impacted by the current pandemic – both psychologically and behaviourally – by capturing data from over 16,700 users. The research by London startup Streetbees shows that since the lockdown began, fear and anxiety levels are already starting to decline in the UK, while boredom has become the leading emotional state.
But does who you live with impact this? Are people in house-shares coping better than families with children, or are those who live alone actually far less impacted by what’s happening?
Families and those who live with their partners are showing a steep decline in anxiety levels in the second week of lockdown, whereas house-shares and people who live alone followed different patterns.
House-shares is the only group who saw an increase in anxiety in the second week, while single dwellers were the only ones who spiked in the first week. Although people who live alone must adjust to having no social interaction, it’s the least difference to their at-home routine.
When it comes to boredom – everyone is feeling it. House-shares evolved differently to others though – as the first week saw a decline. This will be because lockdown meant they didn’t have to compromise social interactions – it simply meant they couldn’t do it outside. However, the novelty soon wore off and now they’re more bored than anyone.
One bit of good news is that the number of people feeling positive is also on the rise – although it’s a slow increase, it shows there’s hope in how Brits are coping with the crisis. Will this continue to rise or will boredom continue to dominate?