Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Parenting Stress Across Asian Countries: A Cross-National Study

The perinatal health secondary to pandemic: association between women's delivery concerns and infant's behavioral problems

BACKGROUND

COVID-19 pandemic characterised a unique and vulnerable social, emotional, and health environment for pregnancy, with potential long-lasting risks to maternal and child health outcomes. In women who were pregnant at the peak of COVID-19 pandemic, we investigated the association between pandemic-related concerns about pregnancy and delivery and both the parent's (i.e. maternal parenting stress) and the infant's (i.e. emotional-behavioral problems) outcomes 12 months after birth.

METHODS

A sample of 352 Italian pregnant women completed a web-based survey from 8 April to 4 May 2020 and a follow-up at 12 months after delivery. Maternal assessment in pregnancy covered prenatal measures for: pandemic-related concerns about pregnancy and childbirth, COVID-19 stressful events exposure, pandemic psychological stress, and mental-health symptoms (i.e. depression, anxiety). The 12 months' assessment covered post-partum measures of social support, parenting stress and maternal reports of infants' behavioral problems.

RESULTS

The results of the Quasi-Poisson regression models on the association between COVID-19 related influencing factors and parenting stress and infant's behavioral problems showed that the presence of higher pandemic-related concerns about pregnancy and childbirth scores was associated with greater total and internalising behavioral problems but not with parenting stress levels.

CONCLUSION

Perinatal mother-infant health has been sensitively threatened by pandemic consequences with maternal concerns about childbirth in pregnancy being associated with 12 months' children's behavioral outcomes. There is a need to invest in psychological support for perinatal women throughout the transition to parenthood to protect risk conditions before they get chronic or severe and influence offspring development.

Childcare Disruptions and Parental Stress During the COVID-19 Pandemic

OBJECTIVE

Families in the United States experienced tremendous disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study evaluated the relationship of parental stress during the pandemic with interruptions in availability of services (childcare, after-school activities, and medical appointments) for children.

METHODS

We analyzed data from 2 waves of the Measuring the Impact of Violence Against Children and Women During a Pandemic survey 1 to develop a multivariable logistic regression model of the association between caregivers' stress and pandemic-related disruptions in children's lives. Caregivers' past experiences of childhood abuse, recommended stress-relieving activities, and responses to the statement "helping my child(ren) with their education, including remote schoolwork, has been very stressful and/or has resulted in increased tension at home" were included as covariates. Demographic and socioeconomic variables were examined as potential confounders.

RESULTS

In total, 3479 (73.3%) of 4659 respondents reported feeling stressed since the start of the pandemic. For every one-item increase in the number of COVID disruptions in children's lives, the odds of feeling stressed increased by 20% (OR 1.20: p value < 0.0001, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.14-1.27). Compared with men, women had 60% higher odds of feeling stressed (odds ratio [OR] 1.60: p value < 0.0001, 95% CI, 1.32-1.93). The covariates listed earlier were all statistically significant.

CONCLUSION

Pandemic-related disruptions in children's lives were significantly associated with caregiver stress. Women were more likely to feel stressed than men. Sex, education, marital status, and family income were also associated with parental stress. These results suggest that childcare continuity and parental support should be part of disaster planning.

Diet Quality as a Mediator in the Relationship Between Perceived Stress and Depression Among Family Caregivers of Patients with Chronic Illness in Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this research was to investigate the correlation between caregivers' perceived stress and depression and examine the mediating role of quality of diet on this relationship.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was performed in Medical City from January to August 2022 in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Utilizing the Stress Scale, Anxiety and Depression, the Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile-II questionnaire, and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, researchers assessed levels of perceived stress, diet quality, and depression. The bootstrap approach and the SPSS PROCESS macro were used to assess the importance of the mediation effect. The target population was family caregivers of patients with chronic illness at Medical City in Saudi Arabia. The researcher conveniently sampled 127 patients, with 119 responding, a response rate of 93.7%. A significant correlation between depression and perceived stress was observed (β = 0.438, p < 0.001). Diet quality mediated the relationship between depression and perceived stress (β = -0.187, p = 0.018). The importance of the indirect effect of perceived stress through diet quality was supported by the outcomes of the non-parametric bootstrapping method (95% bootstrap CI = 0.010, 0.080). The findings revealed that the indirect influence of diet quality explained 15.8% of the overall variation in depression.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings help clarify the mediating effects of diet quality on the relationship between perceived stress and depression.

Symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress in Brazilian mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic

The study aimed to identify the factors associated with symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress in Brazilian mothers of children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a cross-sectional study carried in 2020 with the participation of 822 mothers who answered an online questionnaire containing sociodemographic variables and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). The adjusted model showed a higher depression score in women who became unemployed during the pandemic, who felt a greater burden in taking care of children, who took medication on a regular basis, and who self-assessed their health as regular or poor/very poor. Having a lower family income increased their anxiety scale score. In contrast, the variables associated with a reduced anxiety scale score included greater age, not feeling overwhelmed with demands to care for children, not using medications, not having gastrointestinal diseases, and good/very good self-assessed health. These variables, together with the benefits of living in the Northeast and Midwest regions of Brazil as well as sleeping more hours per night, were also associated with reduced stress. The present study is significant as it points out elements present in the daily lives of mothers that have an impact on their mental health. The study points to the need to (re)think mental health policies taking into account the needs of the public studied.

Global prevalence of physical and psychological child abuse during COVID-19: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

With the onset of COVID-19, most countries issued lockdowns to prevent the spread of the virus globally and child abuse was concerned under such a closed circumstance.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to estimate the prevalence of physical and psychological child abuse during COVID-19 and moderating variables for those abuses.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

The rates of child abuse reported in 10 studies encompassing 14,360 children were used, which were gathered through a systematic review.

METHODS

We reviewed previous studies systematically for the appropriate data and conducted a meta-analysis.

RESULTS

The prevalence of physical child abuse is estimated at 18 % and that of psychological abuse is estimated at 39 %. Regarding the unemployment rate, it reveals a high correlation with physical abuse (b = 0.09; p < 0.05) but not with psychological one (b = 0.03; no. sig).

CONCLUSIONS

To prevent child abuse during the pandemic, it is suggested to minimize COVID-19-related economic damage to families and explore factors for reducing the gap between low and high-income countries.

Parent-child relationships and psychological distress: survey of parents from low-income families after the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction

This study aims to shed light on parent-child relationships and the psychological health of parents from low-income families after the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Methods

This cross-sectional study recruited 553 parents of children aged 13-24 years in low-income community settings. The Parent-Child Conflict scale of the Parental Environment Questionnaire (PEQ) was used to measure parent-child conflict. Psychological distress was assessed using the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale short form (DASS-21).

Results

The study revealed a low level of parent-child conflict in the overall study population, with a median PEQ of 48.0 (interquartile range [IQR] 36 to 48). Concerning demographics, married parents reported a likelihood of having a higher level of parent-child conflict over 3 times higher than single parents (OR = 3.18 95%, CI 1.30-7.75). More parent-child conflicts were also found in parents aged 60-72 years old who were unemployed, retired, or housewives and from lower-income groups. In regard to lifestyle factors, a higher level of physical activity and having enough sleep were associated with lower levels of parent-child conflict. Only approximately 1% of the participants reported symptoms of depression, anxiety, or stress.

Discussion

Low risk exists for parent-child conflict and psychological sequelae following the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, which could be due to various support measures implemented by the government. Vulnerable parents identified as being at risk of parent-child conflict warrant attention in future advocacy efforts.

COVID and Gender: A Narrative Review of the Asia-Pacific Region

The COVID-19 pandemic has been the largest infectious disease epidemic to affect the human race since the great influenza pandemic of 1918-19 and is close to approaching the number of deaths from the earlier epidemic. A review of available data and the numerous currently available studies on COVID-19 shows that the rate of clinical cases is about 10% greater in females than males in Asia. However, the number of deaths is greater in males than in females. Women are more likely to experience the psychological effects of COVID-19 during and after acute infections. A significant proportion of acute COVID-19 infections continue and their prolonged symptoms have been reported. Further studies are needed, including detailed serology, to measure and monitor the incidence of COVID-19. The pandemic has had a widespread impact on broader societies including shortages of food, lockdowns and isolation. The number of orphans in developing countries has increased. Women have had to bear the major impacts of these community effects. More research is required to develop better vaccines acting against new strains of the virus and to develop systems to distribute vaccines to all people.

Parents' personality, parenting stress, and problem behaviors of children with special needs in China before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

The positive predictive effect of children's problem behaviors on parenting stress has been verified to some extent, but research on parents of children with special needs remains insufficient. Moreover, the role of parental personality traits in the relationship between children's problem behaviors and parenting stress, and whether it differs from before the COVID-19 pandemic, remains unclear. Accordingly, in this study, online questionnaires were used to survey parents of children with autism and intellectual disabilities in China - 337 parents before and 604 during the COVID-19 pandemic - to explore the relationship between problem behaviors in the children and parenting stress as well as the moderating effect of parents' personality. The results showed that problem behaviors of children with autism and intellectual disabilities had a positive predictive effect on parenting stress. However, there was no significant difference in this effect before and during the pandemic. In addition, the relationship between children's problem behaviors and parenting stress was moderated by the Agreeableness and Neuroticism of the parents, but only during COVID-19 pandemic. The research results suggest that, during the pandemic when facing problem behaviors of children with autism or intellectual disabilities, positive personality characteristics such as Agreeableness have a protective effect on parenting stress. By contrast, negative personality characteristics such as Neuroticism are risk factors. The study results provide evidence from special groups regarding the role of parents' personalities in the parent - child interaction and the parenting stress models.

How do Internet moms raise children? The reshaping of Chinese urban women’s parenting psychology by COVID-19 online practices

With the acceleration of social transformation and “mediatization,” urban women’s parenting practices have become an important factor affecting the demographic structure and national development. The global COVID-19 pandemic has further contributed to the networking of social life and the creation of “Internet moms” who rely on the Internet for parenting interactions. Using a mixed-methods design, this paper conducted participant observation and in-depth interviews with 90 mothers from various industries born after 1980/1990 across multiple geographies in China to examine the impact of urban women’s Internet practices on the psychology and practice of parenting during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as how they were empowered by media technologies to practice motherhood and complete their role socialization through the sharing of parenting information, experiences, and actions. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the changing impact of Internet-based parenting practices on Chinese urban women’s daily lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through the analysis of these influences, it was found that the whole society, including urban parenting groups, paid attention to self-expression and self-worth and further hoped to arouse society’s recognition, face up to the identity of “mother” and “female,” and give more attention and support to women. The study also found that, as interpersonal communication channels were hindered during the COVID-19 pandemic, the power of the Internet, represented by social media, has created a new platform for information empowerment, action mutual, and ideation of motherhood for urban women formerly bound to family and parenting matters. From individual, family, and individual parenting experiences to group, social, and shared scenarios, urban women are engaged in emotional and memory interactions, including motherhood-related expression, experiences, and collaboration. This shift from virtual to physical has reshaped their parenting view, helping them break through the confines of family experience and traditional customs in addition to providing psychological motivation to express their gender concepts, shape their self-image, construct gender power, and interpret intimate relationships, pushing them to become more reflective of the times, as well as more capable and authoritative.