The Association Between New COVID-19 Cases and Google Searches for
Mental Health
- Patrick Tennant,
- Jennifer Gonzalez,
- Melissa Rowan,
- Catie Hilbelink,
- Quianta Moore
Patrick Tennant
Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy
Corresponding Author:[email protected]
Author ProfileAbstract
Mental health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the
resulting economic and societal changes are an important matter of
public health. We examined the state-level association between new cases
of COVID-19 reported and mental health, as measured through Google
search trends, on a daily basis. Our analyses indicate a significant
positive association, such that increases in mental health Google
searches should be expected on days when relatively more new cases of
COVID-19 are announced. The overall effect and state-level variation
were analyzed via a multi-level model and full results are included
here. Implications and public policy suggestions are discussed.