Journal of Rural Mental Health, Vol 47(1), Jan 2023, 1-9; doi:10.1037/rmh0000225
While stress levels, emotional concerns, and mental health issues among U.S. farmers are well documented, limited research exists on the specific impacts of COVID-19 on farmer mental health. To begin to explore this question, our study sought to identify characteristics of farmers at elevated risk for COVID-19-related emotional concerns. We engaged in secondary analysis of 2020 survey data from farmers in a southern state (N = 613), hypothesizing that farmers with high COVID-19-related concern about farm operations/finances, health, and uncertainty in how to navigate pandemic-related challenges would report high levels of concern and thus distress about the emotional impact of COVID-19. We conducted logistic regression analyses; the best-fitting model (p