A new column on VoxEU by the Faculty's Professor Sriya Iyer et al notes the potentially large welfare implications in a crisis between religion and psychological distress is sparse.

There was little difference across religions, with broadly similar results for Christians, Muslims, and Hindus. However, when places of worship were closed, religious Muslims and Catholics – two groups that require weekly communal attendance from followers – suffered disproportionately, a result with policy consequences for future pandemics.