Liminality and insecurity: A qualitative study of young adults’ vulnerabilities during the first twelve months of COVID-19 in Australia

Abstract

COVID-19 has disrupted the normative social order, particularly for young adults. Their deteriorating mental health over 2020 has been associated with the economic and social conditions during the COVID-19 lockdowns. We conducted 19 semi-structured interviews with young adults aged 8 and 29 most of whom lived in Victoria, Australia. The interviews explored participants' experiences and responses to COVID-19, covering areas such as disrupted everyday practices and future plans, impacts on their physical and mental health, and interactions with community and services. Young adults were concerned about loss of social connectedness, their mental health and the complex interplay of issues such as employment, income, education and housing. They developed routines to protect their physical and mental health while in lockdown and some made the most of new opportunities. However, the pandemic may have had a profound effect by disrupting some young adults’ plans for the future, thus contributing to a sense of ontological insecurity.