The health and economic crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic is
unprecedented in recent human history. To date, most of the scientific efforts
have been devoted to the study of the direct consequences of the pandemic on
mortality and morbidity, especially among the oldest groups of the population.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to produce broad demographic
consequences on individuals in all phases of their lifecourse, and these effects
are likely to persist for years. In fact, although necessary, the
nonpharmaceutical measures implemented to fight the Coronavirus have had
and will likely produce profound and enduring consequences on people’s life.
These, in turn, affect individuals’ demographic plans and behaviors. As such, the
health and economic crisis may turn into a demographic crisis. Adopting a lifecourse perspective, the DEMOCOVID project examines the indirect
demographic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on individuals of
different ages and at different stages of the lifecourse, both during and postpandemic.
The project focuses on Italy, a country that strongly experienced the
health and economic consequences of the pandemic, although in a very
unequal way, both across its geographical areas and across demographic and
socio-economic groups.
A lifecourse approach to the study of the demographic consequences of the
pandemic is crucial because individuals of all ages have been strongly affected,
although differently and for different reasons. In particular, DEMOCOVID will
examine the effects of the pandemic on: 1) children’s learning outcomes and
wellbeing; 2) young adults’ demographic plans and behaviors; 3) couples’
gender dynamics and dissolution; 4) older people’s wellbeing and
intergenerational relationships; 5) wellbeing and intergenerational relationships
of individuals who experienced the death of a close kin due to COVID-19.
DEMOCOVID accounts for the fact that individuals’ lives are strongly connected,
particularly across generations within families. Thus, the negative consequences
of the pandemic on an individual are likely to spread to their kin. Family,
however, can act as a counterforce to the pandemic, representing a source of
emotional and instrumental support, that is especially important in a country
like Italy, characterized by a heavy reliance on family transfers. By examining
how health and socioeconomic shocks generated by the pandemic influence
demography over the lifecourse, the project will: 1) pave the way for new
theoretical developments on determinants of demographic outcomes; 2)
encourage public discussion on how the COVID-19 pandemic will shape
demographic patterns; 3) provide relevant information for evidence-based
policies that may alleviate the detrimental effects of the pandemic on
individuals’ and families’ lives and may help to be better prepared for future
pandemic.