Chapter 20: Cognitive and Psychological Effects of COVID-19: Insights From a Systematic Meta-Review of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses

The COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on education globally, from primary to tertiary levels. Many studies have been conducted to better understand the cognitive and psychological effects of this pandemic, including research on a variety of topics (e.g., school closures, online teaching and learning, mental and physical health), populations (e.g., students and instructors), and educational levels (e.g., school, higher education). Numerous systematic reviews and meta-analyses provide both qualitative and quantitative summaries of the literature on specific effects of the pandemic on education. In this chapter, we present a systematic meta-review of these reports to synthesize and combine this existing database and derive broader and more comprehensive insights that can aid educational stakeholders moving forward. We identified 5806 records, and after screening abstracts and full-texts, a total of 55 reports were included in our review: 43 systematic reviews, 4 meta-analyses, and 8 combined systematic reviews and meta-analyses published until November 2022. Through thematic synthesis, we identified six groups of psychological and cognitive variables: mental health, emotional experiences, attitudes and worries, social relationships, achievement-related variables, and meaning. For each of these groups, we discuss key findings to provide a detailed narrative of psychological and cognitive implications of COVID-19 that can inform future educational practices and policies.