# Impacts of COVID-19 on mental health and substance use in youth and young adults

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT & ST AGRIC COLLEGE · 2021 · $155,318

## Abstract

PROJECT ABSTRACT
 Coincident with the start of our project (R21DA051943), the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically altered the
lives of youth and young adults. In Vermont, “stay home, stay safe” orders were issued in March 2020, with
schools closed for the remainder of the academic year and colleges transitioning to remote learning for the end
of the spring semester. Disruptions in social interactions typical of adolescence and young adulthood may have
resulted in reductions in peer and school influences that impact substance use; they may also have increased
social isolation. Risks associated with reductions in these prosocial influences may be magnified by greater
exposure to parental or household influences on substance use during this time. National studies document
increases in mental health symptoms in response to COVID-related stressors, highlighting vulnerability for
depression, anxiety, loneliness, and suicidality in young adults. Mental health symptoms, in turn, are correlated
with tobacco and substance use in youth and adults. Preventing COVID-related morbidity and mortality in young
people will require ongoing longitudinal tracking of mental health symptoms and rapid intervention to mitigate
their effects on substance use. Our study embodies the infrastructure needed to achieve mental health and
substance use surveillance and prevention goals. In line with the “time sensitive” nature of the mechanism, we
pivoted to add items on COVID-related experiences, distress, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on
substance use in the three survey waves in the parent study. This revision proposes three additional waves of
data collection in 1,000 youth and young adults within the current project period to document the effects of the
COVID-19 pandemic on youth and young adult mental health and substance use from Fall 2020 through Spring
2022. This timeline is also expected to span the release of a vaccine and greater return to in-person school and
work. This supplement directly addresses the research priority in NOT-DA-20-047 to use ongoing studies to
understand the broad impacts of COVID-19 on substance use: longitudinal surveys collected quarterly in a large
sample of youth and young adults will provide fine-grained data on the relationship between COVID-related
stressors, mental health, and substance use. Further, given Vermont’s rapid return to in-person school for youth
and young adults in Fall 2020, data from this study will provide key information on the potential impact on young
people of pandemic-related re-opening efforts across the country.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10312470
- **Project number:** 3R21DA051943-01S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT & ST AGRIC COLLEGE
- **Principal Investigator:** Andrea Villanti
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $155,318
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2020-04-01 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10312470

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10312470, Impacts of COVID-19 on mental health and substance use in youth and young adults (3R21DA051943-01S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10312470. Licensed CC0.

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