Evaluating the effect of individual characteristics and COVID‐19 pandemic on people living under extreme poverty conditions in Greece

Abstract

Poverty dimensions and COVID‐19 are risk factors for a low quality of life and anxiety. The aims of this study are to: (a) examine the quality of life and anxiety levels of citizens living under poverty and (b) explore whether this population's characteristics shaped the way the pandemic affected their anxiety and quality of life. Data were collected from two groups, each one consisting of 50 citizens of the Attica region of Greece who live in poverty. The first wave was collected in 2019 and the second in 2021. The same information was collected in both waves, including individual characteristics, quality of life dimensions, and anxiety traits. Both sample groups were receivers of “TEBA,” a social solidarity allowance for people living in poverty in Greece. Specific individual characteristics were more strongly associated with better quality of life and different anxiety levels during the COVID‐19 pandemic. The results offer potential insights into specific sociodemographic characteristics which are strongly associated with quality of life and/or anxiety, factors which are being constantly affected by the poverty phenomenon.