COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts on Community Connections and Third Place Engagement: A Qualitative Analysis of Older Americans

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread disruption and upheaval across communities. This qualitative study uses data from the national COVID-19 Coping Study to investigate how community engagement shifted during the pandemic among older Americans. We conducted reflexive thematic analysis of open-ended online survey responses from a random subsample of 500 participants. Our analysis identified ways in which participants altered sources of community and engagement, struggled with engagement, and increased engagement, and how experiences differed among bonding ties compared to bridging ties. Results reinforce the importance of third places for heterogeneous social connections and inform strategies to strengthen community among older Americans.