Initial Real Time Coping by African American Christians During the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19)

Seventy-three telephone interviews during the initial COVID-19 shutdown explored coping strategies among African American Christians. Open-ended questions and Likert-type scale items assessed faith, advice given, helpful Scriptures, worship practices, belief in God, and religion and spirituality’s importance. Most participants reported coping well and following governmental guidelines. Frequent church attendance before the shutdown was significantly associated with less worrying and being less anxious. Married individuals also reported less worrying. We discuss limitations, future research, and implications.