Family functioning and life satisfaction among female university students during COVID-19 outbreak: the mediating role of hope and resilience

Family Climate as a Mediator of the Relationship between Stress and Life Satisfaction: A Study with Young University Students

BACKGROUND

The family environment has a significant influence on the personality development of young people and their assessment of life satisfaction. Perceived stress is related to life satisfaction, but this relationship is also influenced by the family context. The present study analysed the impact of perceived stress on life satisfaction and the mediating role of family climate in university students.

METHODS

A sample of 920 university students was recruited for this study. The instruments used included the Perceived Stress Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Family Social Climate Scale, and socioeducational information was collected.

RESULTS

The results indicate that perceived stress had a significant and positive effect on both conflictive and violent family climates, while life satisfaction was negatively impacted by these negative family climates. Additionally, supportive and cohesive family climates, along with difficulty expressing feelings and opinions, were found to have significant positive effects on life satisfaction.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings highlight the importance of the family system in shaping individual conditions and how it can regulate the relationship between stress and life satisfaction.

The Effect of Family Characteristics on the Functioning of a Child with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder in Bedouin Society in Israel

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by difficulties in communication and social-emotional interaction. It is associated with an increase of parental stress and poor family functioning, both of which are harmful for a child's functioning and adaptive behavior. An important source of support to parents are grandparents, especially in traditional populations. One such population is the Bedouin population. The present study tested the association between emotional support from mother and mother-in-law to the adaptive behavior of children with ASD, and whether this relation is serially mediated by family functioning and satisfaction in life as reported by Bedouin mothers of children with ASD. 100 mothers of children with ASD fulfilled a questionnaire about emotional support from their mothers and mother-in-law, family functioning, satisfaction in life and child's adaptive behavior. We found that indeed, family functioning and satisfaction in life serially mediated the relations between emotional support from mother and mother-in-law and child adaptive behavior. These findings indicate that intergenerational solidarity between women can improve not only the functioning of the nuclear family and wife's satisfaction with life, but also, indirectly, the adaptive behavior of a child with ASD. It highlights the importance of women solidarity, especially in traditional society, where women are kept marginal.

Family functioning and resilience in children in mainland China: life satisfaction as a mediator

Introduction

Grounded in the perspective of "Positive Youth Development" (PYD), resilience is an important developmental asset shaping human development. Although many studies have examined the impact of resilience on child developmental outcomes, relatively few studies have focused on the predictors of resilience, in particular familial antecedents of resilience in Chinese children and adolescents. In addition, the degree to which life satisfaction contributes to the mechanism by which family functioning impacts the development of children's resilience over time needs to be clarified. Besides, there is a scarcity of studies that incorporate family functioning, resilience as well as life satisfaction in a single comprehensive investigation to analyze the mediating impact of life satisfaction on the linkage between family functioning and resilience under COVID-19.

Methods

The study investigated the predictive role of family functioning on resilience as well as the mediating effect of life satisfaction within the context of COVID-19, using data gathered in two waves before the onset of the pandemic and after the resumption of school during the pandemic, with 6 months apart. We employed the 33-item "Chinese Family Assessment Instrument" to evaluate family functioning, the 7-item "Chinese Resilience Scale" to assess resilience, and the "Satisfaction with Life Scale" with 5 items to measure life satisfaction.

Results

As per the responses of 4,783 students in Grades 4 through 7 recruited in Sichuan, China, family functioning significantly predicted resilience concurrently and longitudinally. After controlling for resilience scores in Wave 1, results demonstrated that family functioning examined in Wave 1 predicted an increase in resilience reported in Wave 2. In addition, family functioning significantly predicted life satisfaction, which also significantly predicted resilience. Multiple regression using PROCESS analyses indicated that life satisfaction mediated the predictive relationship between family functioning and child resilience.

Discussion

The findings spotlight the significant involvement of family functioning as well as life satisfaction in shaping children's resilience in the Chinese context. The study also supports the hypothesis that perceived satisfaction with life serves as a mediator between family functioning and child resilience, suggesting interventions and support should concentrate on the family level for enhancing resilience in children.