Alcohol Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Visual Self-Narrative Longitudinal Study About Various Drinking Habits During COVID-19

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people faced life-threatening uncertainties with sociopsychological implications, and increased alcohol usage has been found to be a maladaptive form of coping induced by pandemic-related stress and isolation. Despite this, alcohol has also been found to increase people’s willingness to socialize and reduce stress. We employ visual self-narrative to investigate a research gap into the usage of alcohol, thereby examining the varying roles alcohol has played in people’s lives. Photographs offer deeper understanding through a collection of perishable data into social phenomena, and allow inquiry into sensitive topics with vulnerable populations. Our study, which found alcohol can play a helpful role in coping, further suggests photographic data should be considered in public health research.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Allison Kwesell

Allison Kwesell is an assistant professor of media and communication at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Her research interests include implications of perceived and self-stigma on vulnerable populations, visual narration as a tool to cope with post-trauma situations, and sociopsychological aspects of sustainable recovery. She moved to Japan four months after the Fukushima nuclear disaster and has since been conducting research, working as a documentary photographer, and engaging in volunteer activities in Fukushima. E-mail: [email protected]

Tianyang Gao

Tianyang Gao is a junior at Mount Holyoke College pursuing a major in psychology and philosophy. She is an international student from Canada. She likes reading oral history and is interested in researching individual narratives, especially those from marginalized groups that may otherwise be omitted by the collective narrative. She hopes to continue studying an interdisciplinary field that bridges psychology and philosophy.

Rose Cohen

Rose Cohen is a senior at Mount Holyoke College pursuing a major in English with a concentration in film studies. Some of their research interests include exploring the effects of trauma on vulnerable communities and viewing how photographs can depict times of emotional and physical unrest. In their free time, Cohen works as an editor for their on-campus newspaper, Mount Holyoke News, and as a prose editor for their on-campus literary magazine, The Mount Holyoke Review.