Local response to UW social isolation study leads to national effort

Social distancing guidelines during COVID-19 have prompted UW psychology researchers to launch a national study of how people are coping. Nick Bolton/Unsplash Before word got around of graduate student Adam Kuczynski's social distancing study last month, he and his advisor, Jonathan Kanter, had hoped a couple hundred people would sign up. The study , focused on how King County residents spend their time during COVID-19 physical isolation, drew 500 participants. And very quickly, a theme emerged. "The response from the public and the media to our first survey was overwhelming," said Kanter , a research associate professor of psychology at the University of Washington. "The main question we heard over and over again was, what should someone do to best cope with the crisis?" Participants in the UW COVID Coping Study must be at least 18 years old, live in the United States and have a smartphone that can receive text messages.So with most states now under stay-at-home orders, Kanter and his team this week launched a new study, aimed at a national audience, to test whether a motivational, mental health tip each day changes participants' behavior during social distancing, and improves their mental and relational health. Many of us right now are overwhelmed and are trying to sort through all the opinions, advice, and suggestions that are flooding social and news media.