Nearly half of Kiwis felt depressed and cut off from friends or suffered sleep problems during New Zealand's level 4 lockdown. Photo / 123rf
Nearly half of Kiwis felt depressed and cut off from friends or suffered sleep problems during New Zealand's level 4 lockdown. Photo / 123rf
Nearly half of all Kiwis felt depressed or battled sleep problems during lockdown, while one in three had a member of their household lose income from their job or business.
Māori were also twice as likely to report that someone from their household lost a job during the fallout from the Covid-19 crisis.
That's according to a newly released Massey University survey of more than 1000 people.
"The disproportional economic, social and health impacts on Māori reflect similar experiences of unequal Covid-19 burden among minority groups around the world," School of Communication, Journalism and Marketing lecturer Dr Jagadish Thaker said.
The survey found 20 per cent of Māori households had at least one member who lost a job compared to 11 per cent for New Zealand Europeans.
Thirty-four per cent of Māori were also unable to pay monthly bills, more than double that of New Zealand Europeans at 14 per cent.
New Zealand entered its stringent level 4 lockdown on March 25, with Kiwis unable to leave their homes except to buy essential food and medicine and to go for exercise in their local area.
The country then exited its level 4 lockdown on April 27 before then moving back to level 1 and normal life on June 8.
Despite New Zealand being free from community transmission of Covid-19 ever since, nine out of 10 Kiwis expect the country's economic situation to get worse, with more job losses coming in the next six months.
"Although we are out of lockdown, these findings show that the majority of New Zealanders perceive the future is going to be tough," Thaker said.
According to Thaker, one of the most surprising findings was New Zealanders' reluctance to let tourists back in the country.
Kiwis reported feeling cutoff and isolated during the country's historic lockdown. Photo / Brett Phibbs
More than eight out of 10 Kiwis strongly supported (88 per cent) stopping immigration from countries that have poorly managed their Covid-19 response, like the United States.
Seven out of 10 respondents also supported reducing immigration and stopping tourists from China.
"This was surprising because tourism and immigration is typically seen as a backbone of the New Zealand economy," Thaker said.
"However, we are imagining Kiwis are feeling safe after sacrificing so much to stamp out the virus and do not want to see it returning."
The virus had also helped plant healthcare at the forefront of Kiwis' minds heading into the September elections.
About nine in 10 New Zealanders said healthcare was extremely or very important for their vote, followed closely by affordable housing, the economy and Covid-19.
There was also resounding approval for how the Government handled Covid-19, with very high praise for the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and the director general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield.
"New Zealand had timely communication from trusted leaders who the public felt connected to. There was a feeling of unity and a sense that we had a leader looking after us," Thaker said.
Thaker did say, however, that it was concerning that a small minority of those taking the survey believed in conspiracy theories related to the origin of the virus.
WHERE TO GET HELP:
If you are worried about your or someone else's mental health, the best place to get help is your GP or local mental health provider. However, if you or someone else is in danger or endangering others, call 111.
If you need to talk to someone, the following free helplines operate 24/7:
DEPRESSION HELPLINE: 0800 111 757 LIFELINE: 0800 543 354 1737 NEED TO TALK? Call or text 1737 SAMARITANS: 0800 726 666 YOUTHLINE: 0800 376 633 or text 234
