Children and COVID-19 Research Library

The COVID-19 global pandemic has spread throughout the world, posing an extremely dangerous health risk for almost everyone. While dealing with such a large-scale viral disease, the healthcare infrastructure is under strain. Young adults who were thought to have been clinically affected fared better than their older counterparts. This pandemic has affected millions of children, especially those from low-economic backgrounds, who are otherwise highly susceptible and underprivileged. Children of frontline workers and single parents face particular challenges. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more vulnerable to infection and may experience long-lasting negative effects of the pandemic, such as child labor, child trafficking, child marriage, sexual exploitation, and even death. To lessen the psychological negative effects of COVID-19 on children and adolescents, parents, physicians, psychologists, social workers, and hospital administrators, government and non-governmental organizations have essential responsibilities to play. Priority one is to ensure that all children from all socioeconomic strata have access to the necessities of life, including social security, health care, and education. Moreover, some positive changes may result from the global crisis. This research paper discusses the potential consequences of this pandemic.

Child hunger has long-term and short-term consequences, as starving children are at risk of many forms of malnutrition, including wasting, stunting, obesity and micronutrient deficiencies. The purpose of this paper is to show that the child hunger and socio-economic inequality in South Africa increased during her COVID-19 pandemic due to various lockdown regulations that have affected the economic status of the population. This paper uses the National Income Dynamics Study-Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey (NIDS-CRAM WAVES 1–5) collected in South Africa during the intense COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 to assess the socioeconomic impacts of child hunger rated inequalities. First, child hunger was determined by a composite index calculated by the authors. Descriptive statistics were then shown for the investigated variables in a multiple logistic regression model to identify significant risk factors of child hunger. Additionally, the decomposable Erreygers' concentration index was used to measure socioeconomic inequalities on child hunger in South Africa during the Covid-19 pandemic.

This study investigated the household income of families with children. Its specific interest was the earned income losses during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how social transfers have mitigated those losses. It assessed the monthly income levels by comparing the information on the year prior to pandemic to income levels during COVID-19 pandemic.

While children and adolescents’ education has been significantly affected during the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures, how they are impacted remains unknown. Based on Bourdieu’s theory, this paper aims to examine whether cultural capital mediates the association between economic capital and academic achievement during the crisis. Using a longitudinal dataset from the Chinese high school and the moderated mediation model, the result showed that economic capital had a total effect on academic achievement, especially on the students’ academic ranks. Meanwhile, economic-related inequality in education seemed to be mediated by cultural capital. Interestingly, the finding further indicated that the indirect effect was mainly attributable to exam-oriented cultural capital, compared with quality-based cultural capital. we discussed the theoretical contributions and policy implications in the end.

COVID-19 has a ubiquitous impact on human society and a significant impact on the labor market. This paper explores the impact of COVID-19 on income and its gender differences based on Generalized Difference-in-Differences using publicly available national micro-tracking survey data (CFPS 2014–2020) for the first time.

Kenya is a country that is mainly dependent on the agriculture sector for livelihood. Smallholder farmers through Coffee Cooperative Societies play a central role in socio-economic development, particularly in agricultural production, processing, and marketing. The vibrant and dynamic cooperative movement enhances food security, wealth creation, and poverty eradication. FAO report indicates that youths in Kenya are a critical component of the productive population and their input can be harnessed to enhance economic development. However, Kenyan youth has not actively embraced agriculture, due to the involvement of manual labour and poor returns. This study sought to establish factors affecting youth participation in coffee cooperative societies in Machakos County, Kenya. Eighty (80) youth from the eight (8) coffee cooperative societies working under Sustainability Kenya Limited Networks -AGRIFI Project in Machakos County were involved in the study.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a large toll on population health and well-being. We examine the consequences of prenatal exposure for infant health, through which the pandemic may have lasting intergenerational effects. We examine multiple pathways by which the pandemic shaped birth outcomes and socioeconomic disparities in these consequences. Analysis of more than 3.5 million birth records in California with universal information on COVID infection among persons giving birth at the time of delivery reveals deep inequalities in infection by education, race/ethnicity, and place-based socioeconomic disadvantage.

Using a quasi-experimental design, this study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the ‘Eggs Make Kids Sharp & Bright and Strong & Active’ demand-creation campaign in Nigeria. The intervention arm received emotionally compelling radio and television advertisements about eggs, and was exposed to promotional activities and advertising about eggs at points of purchase, schools and health facilities; the comparison arm received no intervention. Children 6–59 months of age (intervention: n = 1359; comparison: n = 1485) were assessed 14 months apart. Intent-to-treat analyses with analysis of covariance method assessed the impact of the intervention on caregivers' behaviour towards eggs, caregivers' willingness to pay for eggs, availability of eggs in households, and consumption of eggs by children 6–59 months of age. Analyses were adjusted for possible confounders and perceived effects of COVID-19 on finances and food consumption.

This study investigated racial/ethnic differences in pregnant and postpartum women’s intentions to receive the COVID-19 vaccination (maternal COVID-19 vaccination intent) and intentions to vaccinate their children against COVID-19 (child COVID-19 vaccination intent) during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic (April–June 2020). This study also assessed Health Belief Model constructs to examine their influence on maternal and child COVID-19 vaccination intent by race/ethnicity. This study includes 489 US pregnant and postpartum women (18–49 years) recruited via Prolific Academic to complete a 55-item cross-sectional online survey.

The countries of the Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU) - Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia, and South Africa are exposed to climatic shocks, especially drought, that pose a continual threat to lives and livelihoods across the subregion. The pandemic has compounded these existing vulnerabilities. Climatic shocks such as these tend to affect the poorest most, exacerbating inequalities and increasing poverty. Food insecurity, which is chronic in the subregion and both a root cause of vulnerability to drought and an outcome of it also increased as a result of impacts from the pandemic. Social safety net programs can help poor and vulnerable households manage the risks they face from shocks, helping to mitigate the impacts on poverty and food insecurity, but their effectiveness can be constrained in several ways. The mobilization of social protection in response to COVID-19 and the challenges that have emerged to that mobilization have strengthened the case for investments in preparedness ahead of future shocks. Adaptive social protection refers to an agenda for preparing social protection systems to improve their response to shocks and to build the resilience of poor and vulnerable households. This report takes stock of ASP in four of the five SACU countries and provides targeted recommendations for each country’s development.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) partly reversed gains made in three decades of sustained decline in poverty and a decade of accelerated reduction in inequality in Philippines. Although the economy is recovering gradually, there are signs that the recovery may be uneven. Income recovery also seems to be slower for the poor. The COVID-19 pandemic may have long-term negative impacts on development of human capital. To manage the pandemic shock, a considerable number of poor households have relied on such adverse coping mechanisms as reducing food consumption, which may aggravate already prevalent child malnutrition and stunting. Policy needs to be directed to support an inclusive recovery and to address enduring medium to long term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This evaluation assesses the quality of the World Bank’s early response to the COVID-19 crisis and the initial steps toward recovery, focusing on the health and social response. It concentrates on the relief stage and support to restructure systems in the first 15 months of the pandemic (February 1, 2020, to April 30, 2021) in 106 countries. A parallel Independent Evaluation Group evaluation looks at the World Bank Group support to address the economic implications of the pandemic. To assess the quality of the response, the evaluation is guided by a theory of action that synthesizes evidence in three dimensions: relevance of support to the needs of countries; implementation, learning, and adjustment; and operational policy and partnerships to support smooth responses in countries. As the response is ongoing, the evaluation does not assess effectiveness but considers early results and pathways that are expected to lead to outcomes.

Resilience can give an individual the strength to face stressful situations and view life positively. The purpose of this study was to analyze the influence of self-efficacy and emotion regulation on the resilience of mothers who work in the formal sector during the Covid-19 pandemic. The research design used was cross-sectional, and the research location was determined using a purposive technique based on the high number of Covid-19 cases at the time of the study, so DKI Jakarta and West Java were chosen. Primary data was collected through questionnaires distributed online via a google form. The sampling technique used voluntary sampling with the respondent's criteria: formal working mothers with school-age children and intact families in DKI Jakarta and West Java Provinces. The number of respondents in this study was 101 people. Data were analyzed using correlation and regression tests. Results showed that self-efficacy, emotion regulation, and resilience were positively related and more than half of mothers had moderate self-efficacy, emotion regulation, and resilience.

The growth in single-parent households is a significant issue, especially because these mothers are in charge of raising and socialising future generations of a country. Recently, it is stated that they have inadequate income and have been reported to have a high level of psychological distress due to a lack of additional support in dealing with household issues. This situation has been getting worst since the pandemic Covid-19 from 2020 to 2021. Many single mothers, have lost their income, health, and economic stability as a result of the virus. This group is facing everyday inconveniences, social isolation, and financial hardship. As a consequence, they are more sensitive to emotional discomfort and disruptions in parenting. On that account, this research been organized by identifying psychological health factors that affect single mothers namely self-esteem, quality of life and financial well-being by conducting a systematic literature review which will be used to propose directions for future research.