Gender-Based Study on Anxiety in Young and Middle-Aged Adults of Delhi-NCR During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Global pandemic- Covid-19 spread worldwide by the year 2020. Along with the massive economic burden on people, it brought with it, tragic loss of human life and mass disruption in fields such as education. With this complete change of lifestyle, people have yet not entirely adjusted to the changes. The unpredictable mutations that the virus has so far shown causes a great deal of uncertainty about the future. The complete inadequacy of medical support and infrastructure that people experienced has multiplied the levels of anxiety in the minds of people owing to the helplessness faced by them in accessing medical facilities. To add to this, the extent of the calamity flooded all information and communication channels with an incessant flow of tragic news and first- hand experiences of impacted families. This further fuelled the sense of fear, uncertainty and anxiety across society. The extended social restrictions and lack of in person social interaction with friends and family is yet another factor that has undoubtedly taken a toll on the mental health and well-being of individuals to varying degrees across demographics. The extent and severity of anxiety experienced by individuals varies from person to person and between genders. The present study conducted was aimed to objectively assess the level of difference in anxiety experienced by males and females of Delhi-NCR in the age bracket of 18 to 60 years. This study also tries to put forth the reasons behind the differences observed in the levels of anxiety among males and females.