Briefing note COVID-19 survey: ethnic differences in effects of COVID-19: household and local context

Abstract

There has been substantial attention paid to the differential effects of the current pandemic across ethnic group. In particular, a number of studies and reports have highlighted excess mortality of certain groups, and increasing attention is also being paid to the economic impacts.
At the same time there is a lot we do not know about the context and drivers of differences.
We use the specific features of Understanding Society, including its longitudinal design and ethnic and immigrant oversamples, and the available measures collected in the three Understanding Society COVID-19 monthly surveys currently released (covering April, May and June) to enhance understanding of the extent to which household and local context alongside individual characteristics and experiences are implicated in three outcomes:
1) Reporting of COVID-related symptoms
2) Mental health
3) Perceptions of neighbourhood communication