COVID-19 risk perceptions and depressive symptoms in South Africa: Causal evidence in a longitudinal and nationally representative sample.

Background: Studies worldwide have highlighted the acute and long-term depressive impacts of psychosocial stressors due to the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Among the wide range of risk factors for depression that transpired during pandemic, greater perceptions of individual vulnerability to the COVID-19 have emerged as a major predictor of increased depressive risk and severity in adults.

Methods: We estimated the extent to which COVID-19 risk perceptions affected adult depressive symptoms in a longitudinal, nationally representative sample in South Africa.