An analysis of mother stress before and during COVID-19 pandemic: The case of China

Maternal COVID-19 Distress and Chinese Preschool Children's Problematic Media Use: A Moderated Serial Mediation Model

Introduction

Maternal distress increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, significantly impacting children's media use. The purpose of this study was to explore the influence mechanism of maternal COVID-19 distress on preschoolers' problematic media us through a moderated mediation model; specifically, we examined the possible mediating roles of parenting stress and negative instrumental use of media in parenting and the moderating role of supportive co-parenting.

Methods

An online survey was conducted in a sample of 1357 children (M_age = 4.01, SD = 1.06; 47.4% boys) and their parents from six public kindergartens in Shanghai, China. The mothers provided information by completing measures on their levels of distress related to COVID-19, parenting stress levels, digital parenting practices, and perception of supportive co-parenting from their partners. Additionally, both parents rated their children's problematic media use.

Results

(1) maternal COVID-19 distress was significantly and positively related to children's problematic media use; (2) this relationship was sequentially mediated by parenting stress and parents' negative instrumental use of media in parenting; and (3) supportive co-parenting moderated the serial mediation path by reducing the effect of maternal COVID-19 distress on parenting stress.

Conclusion

The findings provide some support and guidance for preventing children's problematic media use and enhancing parental adaptation during the COVID-19 pandemic or in potentially adverse situations.

Joys or Sorrows of Parenting During the COVID-19 Lockdown: A Scoping Review

Objectives: The aim of this scoping review was to map out the existing evidence of the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on parents of children and adolescents. We sought to: 1) identify parenting domains that were particularly affected by lockdown measures, 2) describe the challenges and opportunities of lockdown measures in these domains, and 3) define protective and exacerbating factors modulating the effect of lockdown measures on parents. Methods: We identified five main domains investigated in the context of parenting during the early COVID-19 lockdown derived from 84 studies: health and wellbeing, parental role, couple functioning, family and social relationships, and paid and unpaid work. For each domain, we listed challenges and opportunities, as well as discriminant factors. Results: The lockdown impacted all five different but interconnected domains, introduced new roles in parents' lives, and particularly affected women and vulnerable populations. Conclusion: This scoping review highlights the importance of approaching public health policymaking from a social justice perspective. Such an approach argues for social and public health policies to promote health accounting for its social, economic, political, and commercial determinants.

Stressors and coping strategies among single mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic

OBJECTIVES

Increased levels of stress have been reported among parents due to the factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Although social support is known as a protective factor for the stressors, restrictions due to the pandemic could influence the provision and forms of social support. To date, few qualitative studies have examined the stressors and coping strategies in detail. In particular, the role of social support for single mothers during the pandemic remains largely unclear. The purpose of this study is to explore the stressors and coping strategies of single parents during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on social support as a coping strategy.

METHODS

In-depth interviews with 20 single mothers were conducted in Japan between October and November 2021. Data were deductively coded using thematic coding based on codes related to stressors and coping strategies, focusing on social support as a coping strategy.

RESULTS

Most interviewees recognized additional stressors after the COVID-19 outbreak. Five stressors were mentioned by the participants: (1) fear of infection, (2) financial concerns, (3) stress caused by interactions with their children, (4) restrictions on childcare facilities, and (5) stress related to staying at home. The major coping strategies were (1) informal social support from family, friends, and coworkers, (2) formal social support from municipalities or nonprofit organizations, and (3) self-coping strategies.

CONCLUSION

Single mothers in Japan recognized additional stressors after the COVID-19 outbreak. Our results support the importance of both formal and informal social support for single mothers, either in-person or online, to cope with stress during the pandemic.

Post-partum Women’s Anxiety and Parenting Stress: Home-Visiting Protective Effect During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objectives

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a particularly adverse and stressful environment for expecting mothers, possibly enhancing feelings of anxiety and parenting stress. The present work assesses mothers' anxiety levels at delivery and parenting stress after 3 months as moderated by home-visiting sessions.

Methods

Women (n = 177) in their second or third trimester of pregnancy during the COVID-19 lockdown were enrolled in northern Italy and split into those who did and did not receive home visits. After 3 months, the association between anxiety at delivery and parenting stress was assessed with bivariate correlations in the whole sample and comparing the two groups.

Results

Higher anxiety at birth correlated with greater perceived stress after 3 months. Mothers who received at least one home-visiting session reported lower parenting stress at 3 months than counterparts who did not receive home visits.

Conclusions for Practice

The perinatal period is a sensitive time window for mother-infant health, especially during a critical time like the COVID-19 pandemic. We suggest that home-visiting programs could be beneficial during global healthcare emergencies to promote maternal well-being after delivery.

The Effects of COVID-19-Related Stress on Depression in Working Mothers with School-Aged Children: The Moderated Mediation Effect of Parenting Efficacy and Cognitive Flexibility

Objectives: This study aimed to analyze the effects of COVID-19-related stress, parental efficacy, and cognitive flexibility on depression of mothers with school-aged children and to examine a moderated mediation model.Methods: Data on cognitive flexibility, parental efficacy, COVID-19-related stress, and depression were collected from 441 working mothers who had at least one school-aged child using the Cognitive Flexibility Inventory (CFI) and Parenting Sense of Competence (PSOC), COVID Stress/Disruption, and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scales. Data were then analyzed using SPSS 26.0, and PROCESS macro version 4.0.Results: The findings revealed that COVID-19-related stress had a significant positive influence on depression in working mothers, which was mediated by parental efficacy. A moderated mediation analysis further indicated that this indirect effect varied depending upon the mothers’ sense of control a sub-factor of cognitive flexibility. Therefore, when mothers perceived they were unlikely to exercise any control over changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, their parental efficacy exerted a greater mediating effect.Conclusion: Results suggest that interventions reducing COVID-19-related stress and increasing parental efficacy could alleviate depression among working mothers with school-aged children. Furthermore, cognitive interventions could be effective in helping those working mothers experiencing a low level of parenting efficacy due to COVID-19-related stress to perceive the demanding situation as within their control.

Maternal Competence, Maternal Burnout and Personality Traits in Italian Mothers after the First COVID-19 Lockdown

This study aimed to investigate the maternal sense of competence and maternal burnout in Italian mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The sample was composed of 278 mothers of children/adolescents aged 4 to 17 years old. Participants were recruited after the end of the first spring total Italian lockdown (June-October 2020) through online advertisements on websites and social media. We hypothesized a model in which a specific personality trait, such as neuroticism, affected maternal competence by the mediating role of maternal burnout. Results showed that neuroticism was directly and negatively predictive of perception of maternal competence, and it was negatively associated with maternal burnout, specifically specific antecedents that were strictly related to parental burnout. ANOVA results highlighted that the maternal level of education affected maternal competence in terms of satisfaction. In contrast, the working regimen during the first lockdown for COVID-19 affected maternal competence in terms of efficacy. Maternal burnout was affected by atypical child development in terms of both common (job burnout, stress management abilities) and specific (parental burnout) antecedents. COVID-19 strongly increased the risk of maternal burnout, resulting in mothers having a poor perception of their own competency. This is particularly the case in the presence of a neurotic personality.

Motherhood in Academia during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An International Online Photovoice Study Addressing Issues of Equity and Inclusion in Higher Education

Combining motherhood and academic work in higher education has been discussed for decades with the pandemic further exposing the inequalities. This crisis has significantly impacted the daily life of mothers in academia as they devote more time to keep their careers on track, produce papers, and take on other parenting and schooling responsibilities. This paper employs photovoice as an online methodology to document the real-life experiences of 68 women from nine countries who work and parent children in the sudden transition to remote working and learning environments. By explaining the photographs from their perspective, the participants in this study were able to capture their lived experiences, discuss working from home while guiding children in online learning, and create suggestions for ways academic institutions can alleviate gender inequality. The article explores the critical issues of academic work and childrearing drawing international attention to address issues of equity and inclusion in higher education among researchers, policymakers, and institutions.

Children academic stress, mothers’ anxiety and Mother-Child relationship during COVID-19 in China

In this study, the researcher aims to examine and provide some knowledge of COVID-19 impact on mother-child relationship, children perceived academic stress and mothers' anxiety among families in mainland China (N = 1512). The researcher confirms that mental health symptoms resulting from Covid-19 are significant, with extensive impacts on mothers' anxieties, children's academic stress, and mother-child conflict and closeness. The researcher also show significant link between students' tremendous academic stress and students completing their final grade. The author highlights the need for health policies to expand families' psychological well-being especially in crisis time.

Parenting Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder during Crises: Differential Responses between the Financial and the COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis

Parenting a child with autism can be particularly stressful and challenging, especially during periods of crises. This study focuses on parenting children with autism during the COVID-19 pandemic in comparison to the economic crisis, six years ago. We administered the same set of questionnaires (CES-D, F-COPES, PSI-SF, and WHOQoL-BREF), along with a demographic characteristic and a COVID-19-related questionnaire to the same group of parents of children with autism as we did six years ago. Results indicated that during the COVID-19 crisis, the level of parenting stress and the distress due to personal factors related to demands of parenting, were significantly lower compared to the economic crisis, while the environment facet of quality of life was significantly higher. The depressive symptomatology was elevated during both periods. Finally, when addressing the pandemic crisis, parents were more likely to passively accept problematic issues, less able to obtain social support, and less able to acquire and accept help from others. In our sample, findings differentiate the genre of crises through the parents’ responses regarding the sense of competence in their parental role, their quality of life, and the coping strategies they implemented. The study implies that each crisis must be confronted with particular responses to particular needs.

Self-reported mental well-being of mothers with young children during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany: A mixed-methods study

OBJECTIVES

Mothers of young children have been identified as a particularly vulnerable group during the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to explore how occupational, psychosocial and partnership-related factors were associated with their self-reported mental well-being during the first COVID-19 wave.

METHODS

Five hundred fifty participants of the BaBi cohort study (est. 2013, Bielefeld, North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany) were invited to complete an online survey and to take part in email interviews (April-May 2020). With survey data, we assessed self-reported mental well-being through validated instruments (eight-item Patient Health Questionnaire; short version of the Symptom Checklist) and ran linear regression models for occupational, psychosocial and partnership-related factors. We performed content analysis on the interviews' data to further understand the determinants of the women's mental well-being.

RESULTS

One hundred twenty-four women participated in the survey; of which 17 also participated in the interviews. A perceived lack of support in childcare was associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms, while having a higher internal locus of control was associated with lower levels. Psychological distress was higher in those reporting lack of emotional or childcare support. Interviews confirmed the interplay of potential stressors and highlighted the difficulties to reconcile different expectations of motherhood.

DISCUSSION

Occupational, psychosocial and partner-related factors can act (to varying degree) both as resources and stressors to the self-reported mental well-being of mothers of young children. These impacts took different forms and created opportunities or challenges, depending on specific life circumstances, such as work or family situations, relationships and own psychosocial resources. Although not representative, our study contributes to building the COVID-19 evidence base, delineating the mental health toll of the pandemic on mothers of young children and the factors that contribute to it.

Brief Report: A Cross-Sectional Study of Anxiety Levels and Concerns of Chinese Families of Children With Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Post-first-wave of COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has a multifaceted impact on mental health due to ill health, restrictions and lockdowns, and loss of employment and institutional support. COVID-19 may disproportionally impact families with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) due to the already higher prevalence of mental health conditions in children with SEND and their parents. Therefore, it is essential to determine the short-term impact of the pandemic on the mental health of families with SEND in order to identify their ongoing health support needs. The current study aims to examine the anxiety level and concerns of children with SEND and their parents living in China. The sample consisted of 271 parents of children with SEND aged between 6 and 17 years (M _age = 8.37; SD _age = 2.76). Parents completed an online survey between 10 April to 8 June 2020. Both child and parental anxiety levels and various concerns increased after the initial wave of COVID-19 when compared with retrospective pre-COVID-19 levels. Parental anxiety and concern levels were significantly higher for those living in rural areas compared to urban areas. In addition, parental and child anxiety and concern levels were significantly correlated with each other. Parental anxiety at the lowest level made a unique and significant statistical contribution to children's anxiety levels. The implications of the study findings are discussed.