Background: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted adolescents’ education and social environments, potentially exacerbating mental health risks. Anxiety and depression are closely associated with social vulnerability, yet little research has examined how global pandemics influence this relationship.

Objective: This study examined the association between neighborhood social vulnerability and anxiety and depression among young people following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Methods: Data were from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) (n=2,990). Anxiety and depression were measured using the CIDI-SF at age 22. Neighborhood social vulnerability was measured using the CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index (SVI), integrating socioeconomic status, household characteristics, racial/ethnic minority status, and housing type/transportation. Logistic regression modeled the relationship between SVI and young adult anxiety and depression, adjusting for sex, race, ethnicity, mother’s marital status, cohabitation with father, mother’s education, household income, and residential mobility.

Results: Total neighborhood social vulnerability was associated with lower odds of depression (OR=0.71; 95% CI: 0.48–0.99). Among SVI domains, socioeconomic status (OR=0.66; 95% CI: 0.48–0.93) and household composition/disability (OR=0.73; 95% CI: 0.55–0.98) were negatively associated with depression. The minority status/language domain (OR=0.55; 95% CI: 0.32–0.94) was the only domain significantly associated with decreased anxiety.

Conclusions: Unexpectedly, greater neighborhood social vulnerability was associated with lower odds of anxiety and depression among young adults following the COVID-19 pandemic. Further research will examine potential resilience mechanisms underlying this negative association.