Abstract
The purpose of this research was to analyze the effect of clients emotional and behavioral health during the COVID-19 pandemic through the perspective of mental health professionals. This qualitative content analysis study explored clinicians’ perspectives regarding their clients’ mental health and the interventions used with clients since the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a snowball sampling method, interviews were conducted with ten mental health clinicians who have worked with three or more clients consistently for the past six months and who have had their LCSW or LMFT licensure for a minimum of one year in California. Three primary themes emerged from this study. These themes include Mental Health Symptoms (Increase, No change), Coping Strategies (Maladaptive/Lack of Coping, Creative Coping), and Interventions (Less Effective, More Effective). Implications for social work practice and policy are discussed.