BRIEF8.B Substance use and mental health of adolescents: Perceived COVID-19 effect on emotional or mental health among adolescents ages 12–17 by past-year major depressive episode (MDE) status, MDE with severe impairment status, and level of COVID-19 effect reported, October–December 2020

Perceived negative effect on emotional or mental health	Total, ages 12–17	Ages 12–13*	Ages 14–15*	Ages 16–17*
Perception of pandemic's negative effect on emotional or mental health among total population
Not at all	30.8	37.1	29.1	25.2
A little or some	50.8	48.8	52.2	51.8
Quite a bit or a lot	18.3	14.2	18.7	23.0
Perception of pandemic's negative effect on emotional or mental health among people with past-year MDE
Not at all	10.5	*	12.5	13.4
A little or some	40.8	*	*	*
Quite a bit or a lot	48.7	*	*	*
Perception of pandemic's negative effect on emotional or mental health among people with past-year MDE with severe impairment
Not at all	9.6	*	*	*
A little or some	35.1	*	*	*
Quite a bit or a lot	55.3	*	*	*
Perception of pandemic's negative effect on emotional or mental health among people with no past-year MDE
Not at all	35.1	41.6	33.0	28.7
A little or some	52.2	48.6	54.5	54.4
Quite a bit or a lot	12.7	9.8	12.5	16.9
* Low precision.
NOTE: Respondents with unknown information on their perception of the COVID-19 pandemic's negative effect on their emotional or mental health, with unknown past-year major depressive episode data, and with unknown impairment data were excluded. Respondents were asked how much, if at all, the COVID-19 pandemic affected their mental health. Potential responses were "not at all," "a little," "some," "quite a bit," or "a lot."
SOURCE: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, National Survey on Drug Use and Health.