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Xu K, Geng S, Dou D, Liu X. Relations between Video Game Engagement and Social Development in Children: The Mediating Role of Executive Function and Age-Related Moderation. Behav Sci (Basel) 2023; 13:833. [PMID: 37887483 PMCID: PMC10604845 DOI: 10.3390/bs13100833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2023] [Revised: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 10/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The global proliferation of video games, particularly among children, has led to growing concerns about the potential impact on children's social development. Executive function is a cognitive ability that plays a crucial role in children's social development, but a child's age constrains its development. To examine the association between video game engagement and children's social development while considering the mediating role of executive function and the moderating role of age, a questionnaire was distributed to a sample of 431 parents. The results revealed a negative relation between video game engagement and social development in children, with executive function found to mediate this relation fully. Additionally, the negative association between video game engagement and executive function became more pronounced as children grew older. In light of these findings, it is advisable to adopt proactive strategies to limit excessive video game use, consider the developmental characteristics of children at different ages, and prioritize the promotion of executive function to facilitate social development among children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ke Xu
- College of Preschool Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China; (K.X.); (S.G.)
| | - Shuliang Geng
- College of Preschool Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China; (K.X.); (S.G.)
| | - Donghui Dou
- School of Sociology and Psychology, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing 100081, China;
| | - Xiaocen Liu
- College of Preschool Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China; (K.X.); (S.G.)
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2
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Guerra GC, Nardozza O, Frigerio A, Garito MC, Ponzetti S, Passaquindici I, Fasolo M, Spinelli M, Lionetti F. Families Facing Pandemic Modifications of Everyday Life: A Mixed Study on Mothers' and Children's Emotional Reactions and Regulation Strategies. CHILDREN (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 10:1627. [PMID: 37892290 PMCID: PMC10605359 DOI: 10.3390/children10101627] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2023] [Revised: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/23/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic caused many enduring changes in the everyday life of families, with negative effects on parents' and children's wellbeing. However, there is a lack of studies in the literature exploring the emotional reactions and coping strategies of both mothers and children of different ages. Furthermore, most studies used only self-reports. This study aimed to identify the emotions and coping strategies of children, adolescents and their mothers and to verify the association between maternal and child wellbeing. A mixed-method design using interviews and questionnaires was applied to collect information on wellbeing (emotional reactions, behavioral/emotional problems) and coping strategies of both mothers (n = 65; M age = 42.17; SD = 4.40; M age = 41.63; SD = 4.48), and their children (n = 35, 8-10 year; n = 30, 11-13 year) during the second wave of the pandemic (December 2020). No differences between the groups emerged concerning the emotional reactions reported. In contrast, mothers and children of different ages reported different self-regulation and other-regulation strategies. Moreover, maternal strategies had different effects on children's wellbeing. The integration of qualitative and quantitative results was informative to understand how families adapted to the radical changes of everyday life related to the pandemic. The implications for developing interventions in such similar stressful situations to promote family wellbeing are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Carlotta Guerra
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Odette Nardozza
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Alessandra Frigerio
- Department of Psychology, Sigmund Freud University Milano, 20143 Milan, Italy;
| | - Maria Concetta Garito
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Silvia Ponzetti
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Ilenia Passaquindici
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Mirco Fasolo
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Maria Spinelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
| | - Francesca Lionetti
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University G. D’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy; (G.C.G.); (O.N.); (M.C.G.); (S.P.); (I.P.); (M.F.); (F.L.)
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Bonvino A, Calvio A, Stallone R, Marinelli CV, Quarto T, Petito A, Palladino P, Monacis L. Emotions in Times of Pandemic Crisis among Italian Children: A Systematic Review. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 20:6168. [PMID: 37372755 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20126168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2023] [Revised: 06/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
Several studies underlined the negative effects of forced social isolation on emotional processes in younger population. The current study aimed to review existing evidence of the pandemic's impact on the emotional regulation of Italian children aged 0-12 years in order to identify personal and contextual factors that may adversely impact their developmental process. Different electronic databases (Web of Science, APA PsycInfo, APA PsycArticles, MEDLINE, Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection, and Scopus) were used to identify peer-reviewed studies published in English and Italian. Thirteen studies were included in the review, covering a total of 18.843 children. All studies reported negative effects of the lockdown on a child's emotional processes. The most affected were children aged 3-5 years, those living in Northern Italy, and those with low socioeconomic status (SES) families. Alterations in emotional processes were associated with sleep disturbances, quality of family relationships, personality structures, the coping strategies used, and time spent with technological devices. Finally, two- (time × parenting) and three-way (time × parenting × environmental sensitivity) interactions resulted significantly in predicting a child's emotional regulation, respectively, in terms of externalizing and internalizing behaviors. This review remarks that children's emotional processes were negatively impacted during social lockdown, especially where acute social isolation interacted with a set of dispositional and situational risk factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurora Bonvino
- Department of Humanities, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
| | - Antonella Calvio
- Department of Humanities, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
| | - Roberta Stallone
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
| | | | - Tiziana Quarto
- Department of Humanities, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
| | - Annamaria Petito
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
| | - Paola Palladino
- Department of Humanities, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
| | - Lucia Monacis
- Department of Humanities, University of Foggia, 71121 Foggia, Italy
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Levante A, Martis C, Bianco F, Castelli I, Petrocchi S, Lecciso F. Internalizing and externalizing symptoms in children during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic mixed studies review. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1182309. [PMID: 37397311 PMCID: PMC10313408 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1182309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/02/2023] [Indexed: 07/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Given the vulnerability of children during the COVID-19 pandemic, paying close attention to their wellbeing at the time is warranted. The present protocol-based systematic mixed-studies review examines papers published during 2020-2022, focusing on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's internalizing/externalizing symptoms and the determinants thereof. Method PROSPERO: CRD42022385284. Five databases were searched and the PRISMA diagram was applied. The inclusion criteria were: papers published in English in peer-reviewed journals; papers published between January 2020 and October 2022 involving children aged 5-13 years; qualitative, quantitative, and mixed studies. The standardized Mixed Method Appraisal Tool protocol was used to appraise the quality of the studies. Results Thirty-four studies involving 40,976 participants in total were analyzed. Their principal characteristics were tabulated. The results showed that children's internalizing/externalizing symptoms increased during the pandemic, largely as a result of disengagement from play activities and excessive use of the internet. Girls showed more internalizing symptoms and boys more externalizing symptoms. Distress was the strongest parental factor mediating children's internalizing/externalizing symptoms. The quality of the studies was appraised as low (n = 12), medium (n = 12), and high (n = 10). Conclusion Gender-based interventions should be designed for children and parents. The studies reviewed were cross-sectional, so long-term patterns and outcomes could not be predicted. Future researchers might consider a longitudinal approach to determine the long-term effects of the pandemic on children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Systematic review registration https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42022385284, identifier: CRD42022385284.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annalisa Levante
- Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
- Lab of Applied Psychology, Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
| | - Chiara Martis
- Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
| | - Federica Bianco
- Department of Human and Social Science, University of Bergamo, Bergamo, Italy
| | - Ilaria Castelli
- Department of Human and Social Science, University of Bergamo, Bergamo, Italy
| | - Serena Petrocchi
- Lab of Applied Psychology, Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
- Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
| | - Flavia Lecciso
- Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
- Lab of Applied Psychology, Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy
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Li X, Yu J. How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected young people?-Mapping knowledge structure and research framework by scientometric analysis. Front Public Health 2022; 10:1052727. [PMID: 36530726 PMCID: PMC9755507 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.1052727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, there has been a large body of literature focusing on the relationship between the COVID-19 pandemic and young people. The purpose of this study is to explore the current research status and the specific mechanism of COVID-19's effects on young people based on related literature. This paper mainly used VOS viewer and CiteSpace software to conduct a scientometric analysis of 5,077 publications retrieved from the Web of Science database. The results show that the main contributors to the field were mainly from North America and Europe, and the trend of research focus was from shallow to deep. The five main research areas in the field were summarized by keyword clustering analysis as follows: lifestyle changes due to lockdown; changes in stress and emotions; psychological illness and trauma; risk perception and practice toward the epidemic; interventions and social support. Finally, they were linked by four pathways to form a framework that integrates the relationships between the five domains and between elements within each of them, revealing the mechanism of COVID-19's effect on young people. In addition, less studied but promising elements are also presented in the framework, such as research on special groups (disadvantaged socioeconomic groups and sexual minority youth) and extreme suicidal tendencies that deserve our further attention.
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Bramanti SM, Manippa V, Babore A, Dilillo A, Marcellino A, Martucci V, Mallardo S, Isoldi S, Bloise S, Sanseviero M, Iorfida D, De Luca E, Trumello C, D’Alleva F, Ventriglia F, Lubrano R, Del Giudice E. Comparing parental distress and children's difficulties between parents of children with rheumatic diseases and parents of healthy children in families facing the COVID-19 pandemic. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022; 42:1-10. [PMID: 35967493 PMCID: PMC9361970 DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-03589-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic could be a threat for the health status of children with a chronic condition. The present study aimed to explore parents' and children's psychological adjustment during the current pandemic, pursuing a triple objective: to compare the psychological adjustment of parents of children with pediatric rheumatic diseases (PRDs) and parents of healthy children; to analyze children's psychological symptoms (emotional problems and hyperactivity) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and with or without a PRDs diagnosis; to explore the associations of children's emotional problems and hyperactivity with parents' psychological adjustment, parent-child interactions and belonging or not to families with PRDs. This cross-sectional study involved 56 parents of children with PRDs and 53 parents of healthy children. Self-report questionnaires about parents' depression, anxiety, parenting stress, and children's emotional symptoms and hyperactivity-inattention were administered. No differences were detected on psychological adjustment between parents of children with PRDs and parents of healthy children. Parents of children with PRDs reported statistically significant higher levels of children's emotional problems and hyperactivity before the pandemic, compared to parents of healthy children; during COVID-19 pandemic, emotional symptoms increased for both groups, while hyperactivity-inattention symptoms increased only in the group of healthy children. Children's emotional difficulties were associated with higher levels of parental anxiety, worse parent-child interaction and having PRDs; children's hyperactivity symptoms were related to parent-child difficult interaction and higher levels of parental depression. Findings suggest the importance to target the children in relation to their parents, when approaching the psychological aspects of PRDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonia M. Bramanti
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini, 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Valerio Manippa
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini, 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy
- Department of Education, Psychology and Communication, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Bari, Italy
| | - Alessandra Babore
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini, 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Anna Dilillo
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Alessia Marcellino
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Vanessa Martucci
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Saverio Mallardo
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Sara Isoldi
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Silvia Bloise
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Mariateresa Sanseviero
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Donatella Iorfida
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Enrica De Luca
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Carmen Trumello
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini, 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Francesca D’Alleva
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini, 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Flavia Ventriglia
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Riccardo Lubrano
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
| | - Emanuela Del Giudice
- Pediatric and Neonatology Unit, Maternal and Child Department, Sapienza University of Rome, Polo Pontino, Latina, Italy
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Ebbinkhuijsen M, Buijzen M, de Leeuw R, Kleemans M. Explaining Children's News Avoidance During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Front Psychol 2022; 13:889096. [PMID: 35814059 PMCID: PMC9258973 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.889096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite growing concerns that children (8-13 years old) tend to avoid the news, the reasons why have received little research attention. Therefore, the current study aims to develop and test a model conceptualizing the relations between children's news consumption, news avoidance, emotional responses (negative emotions and anxiety-related behaviors), and parent and child mitigation strategies. The model was tested using data collected during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The current, preregistered, survey study was part of a longitudinal project and used data from the second wave. Data were collected in November/December 2020 among 510 children (M age = 10.40; 53.72% girls). Findings showed that children who consumed more news during the pandemic avoided pandemic news less often. Children who experienced more anxiety-related behaviors regarding pandemic news avoided pandemic news more often. The relation between news consumption and emotional responses was stronger for children who experienced restrictive parental mediation more often, indicating that this was not an effective parental mediation strategy for tempering their emotional responses. Children with higher levels of emotional responses used reactive coping strategies more often. However, this did not seem to be an effective strategy against pandemic news avoidance because none of the strategies had a negative relation with pandemic news avoidance. Distancing was even positively related to pandemic news avoidance. Although the current study was not able to fully unravel how news avoidance-related constructs relate to one another, we were able to get some important insights guiding future research. Specifically, it is of crucial importance to unravel the mechanisms that increase the chance of children's news avoidance and those that mitigate it, to build interventions to counteract news avoidance and to protect children from the negative emotional consequences by news consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Ebbinkhuijsen
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Moniek Buijzen
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
- School of Social and Behavioural Sciences, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, Netherlands
| | - Rebecca de Leeuw
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Mariska Kleemans
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
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