Vienna Yearbook of Population Research / Vienna Yearbook of Population Research, 2022, Vol. 20

The 2022 special issue is dedicated to the demographic aspects and consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the first months of 2020, the world was hit by an epidemic emergency of global proportions. Its short- and long-term implications are not yet fully understood, particularly since its duration is still not foreseeable. Nevertheless, the pandemic has spurred social scientists to research the impact of the virus on the society and this in a very short time after the outbreak.
A large part of the issue is dedicated to the analysis of the infections and the mortality patterns. The papers describe the demographic, social, and economic characteristics that influence the spread of infections and determine the number of deaths, with particular attention to issues of measurement. They analyse different waves of the pandemic, often with a comparative framework across multiple countries and also at the regional level – in Europe and outside of Europe. Some papers consider in more detail the impact of measures taken to contain the spread of the virus, e.g., lockdown. The volume also addresses how the pandemic affected the quality of relationships, the intention and motivation to have children, and realized fertility, using a variety of individual-level and register data.
In addition to more specific topics, such as the impact of the spread of crime on mortality in Mexico or a comparison of mortality between nursing home residents and the general population in England, Wales, and Belgium, the issue also includes broader reflections on the likely risks facing different communities of individuals and the potential consequences on their life course, also in relation to other recent risks that overlap with the pandemic (climate change, depopulation, recent armed conflicts).