Mental stress during the pandemic was lower in Switzerland than elsewhere

“Well-being scores were higher in Switzerland even before the pandemic, and the measures to contain the virus were less drastic than in other countries,” says lead author Christian Huber. He is head of department and deputy clinical director at the UPK Basel and leads the “Psychiatric Care Research” group at the University of Basel.

Knowledge of good healthcare and a good social welfare system may also have had a positive effect, says Huber. The mortality rate may have had an impact too. People in South Africa, Mexico, Belarus and Kazakhstan suffered the most from mental stress.

The analysis of the data also reveals regional differences within Switzerland. In Ticino, the Lake Geneva region and northwestern Switzerland, mental health scores are lower and mental stress scores higher than in the Swiss Plateau and eastern Switzerland.

The researchers suspect that this could be due in part to the fact that the measures taken varied from canton to canton and affected people’s daily lives to different degrees. Geography could also have had an impact: “The fact that social contact was limited and leisure facilities were no longer available could have been more noticeable for people in urban areas than for people in less densely populated regions,” says Christian Huber. Restrictions on cross-border commuting may also have had an impact on perceived stress.

Keeping an eye on mental health

“It is not yet clear how much the pandemic will impact people’s mental health in the longer term. Some effects only become apparent after a longer period of time,” says the expert. He therefore believes it is important to conduct regular surveys to gauge the mental health of the population.

Huber sees prevention as an important starting point. How well people are able to deal with crisis situations has a lot to do with the amount of resources available. “I think it’s important to strengthen the mental resilience of the population and, in times of crisis, to consider how great the psychological strain can be. That’s when support measures are needed.” Huber can imagine, for example, training laypeople to help in a crisis, thereby relieving the burden on the system. “At the same time, there needs to be education in schools and destigmatization of mental illnesses, as has already happened in recent years with depression, ADHD and burnout.”

Further evaluations planned

As the survey was conducted using a voluntary online questionnaire, the data is not representative. “Nevertheless, the results provide important clues,” believes Christian Huber.

Further evaluations aim to show which risk factors played a role in the perceived stress and which coping strategies were particularly successful in dealing with the effects of the pandemic. Christian Huber and his research team expect the results by the end of 2026.