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Children and COVID-19 Research Library

UNICEF Innocenti's curated library of COVID-19 + Children research

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1 - 15 of 912
Experiences of same-sex parents during the first year of Covid-19: a qualitative review and analysis of online blogs

AUTHOR(S)
Emily Staite; Katie McIntyre; David Griksaitis

Published: January 2023   Journal: Psychology of Sexualities Review
There are an increasing number of people identifying as part of the LGBT community, with over 165,000 same-sex couples in the US having children in 2019. Research on parenting during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic has been disseminated. However, there is limited research that examines the experiences of same-sex parents. Therefore, a structured qualitative review of online blogs published during the Covid-19 pandemic, authored by same-sex parents, was conducted. Following thematic analysis, three main themes (and 13 subthemes) emerged: 1) Connection; 2) Contrasting experiences of home schooling; and 3) Pride in family. Similarities between same-sex and different-sex parents were highlighted. However, it is notable that same-sex parents continue to feel stigma and exclusion from the wider parenting community.
Social connection when physically isolated: family experiences in using video calls

AUTHOR(S)
Ilze Kacane; Maria Jose Hernández-Serrano

Published: January 2023   Journal: Open Cultural Studies
Digital (video) calls have become a significant tool during the challenging times marked by the COVID-19 pandemic. The article focuses on the perceived functionality of video calls for maintaining social contacts and overcoming loneliness in celebrating family festivities limited by physical distance policies. The qualitative study conducted at the end of 2021 in Latvia and Spain examines families’ cultural socialisation via digital tools and, based on data obtained from semi-structured in-depth interviews, assesses the users’ digital experiences in celebrating Christmas and the New Year from retrospective and prospective standpoints.
Family climate in pandemic times: adolescents and mothers

AUTHOR(S)
Thomas Eichhorn; Simone Schüller; Hannah Sinja Steinberg (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Social Inclusion
This article examines changes in family climate during the first Covid‐19‐related lockdown in Germany. It compares the perspectives of mothers and adolescents to explore whether the factors of perceived changes in family climate are systematically and significantly different between these groups. It measures family climate as positive emotional climate, a sub‐dimension of the family environment scale, to capture a feeling of cohesion and emotional openness within the family. Based on family system theory and the family stress model, it expects an overall deterioration in family climate due to increased environmental adaptation in the pandemic. Furthermore, it expects family climate to deteriorate less when families have economic and social resources available. On the other hand, it assumes that being employed and/or primarily responsible for family care relates to a stronger decline in the family climate. This study employs longitudinal survey data (AID:A) from around 300 German families with children aged nine to 17 and applys individual fixed effects models to investigate changes in family climate from 2019 to 2020.
Who is doing the chores and childcare in dual-earner couples during the COVID-19 era of working from home?

AUTHOR(S)
Sabrina Wulff Pabilonia; Victoria Vernon

Published: January 2023   Journal: Review of Economics of the Household
In 2020–21, parents’ work-from-home days increased three-and-a-half-fold following the initial COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns compared to 2015–19. At the same time, many schools offered virtual classrooms and daycares closed, increasing the demand for household-provided childcare. Using weekday workday time diaries from American Time Use Survey and looking at parents in dual-earner couples, this study examines parents’ time allocated to paid work, chores, and childcare in the COVID-19 era by the couple’s joint work location arrangements. It determines the work location of the respondent directly from their diary and predicts the partner’s work-from-home status.
Effects of a parenting intervention for emotional and behavioral problems in young autistic children under conditions of enhanced uncertainty: two-year follow-up of a pilot randomized controlled trial cohort (ASTAR) during the United Kingdom COVID-19

AUTHOR(S)
Melanie Palmer; Virginia Carter Leno; Victoria Hallett (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Most young autistic children display emotional and behavioral problems (EBPs). There is evidence that behavioral parenting interventions (BPIs) reduce these. The COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns can be seen as a natural experiment to test the longer-term effect of BPIs under conditions of increased uncertainty. Opportunistic follow-up (n = 49) of a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) cohort (n = 62 autistic children aged 6-11 years; originally randomized to a 12-week group BPI [Predictive Parenting; n = 31] or an attention control [Psychoeducation; n = 31]) was conducted during COVID-19−related lockdowns. Measures of parent-reported child irritability and parenting stress were collected at 3 time points (baseline: mean age = 6.7 years; primary endpoint: mean age = 7.1 years, ∼5 months after randomization; and COVID-19 follow-up: mean age = 8.8 years, ∼2 years after randomization). We tested the magnitude of intervention effects using point estimates of differences in child irritability and parenting stress between arms at primary endpoint and COVID-19 follow-up, covarying for baseline scores. We used area under the curve (AUC) analyses to obtain overall estimates of the average intervention effect across all 3 timepoints. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with a subsample of parents (n = 18).
"Mature enough to handle it?": gendered parental interventions in and adolescents' reactions to technology use during the pandemic

AUTHOR(S)
Hillary Steinberg; Stefanie Mollborn; Jennifer Pace

Published: January 2023   Journal: Journal of Family Issues
This study investigated how teenagers reacted to parental regulation of technology. Using longitudinal dyadic interviews with 24 teenagers and their 21 parents in two predominantly white middle-class communities, it explored how teenagers used technology during the COVID-19 pandemic and the differential consequences parental interventions had for teens’ well-being and confidence with technology. Parents’ narratives and actions about technology use were deeply gendered. Boys felt confident about their self-regulation of technology, and parents did not substantially limit boys’ technology use during the pandemic. Girls were less confident about their ability to self-regulate and either worked with their mothers to manage technology, distrusted parents who monitored them, or lacked access to virtual hangout spaces such as video games and social media.
Family functioning buffers the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for children's quality of life and loneliness

AUTHOR(S)
Micah A. Skeens; Kylie Hill; Anna Olsavsky (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Frontiers in Psychology
COVID-19 resulted in mass quarantine measures early in the pandemic. This disruption of daily life widened inequities and made children one of the most vulnerable populations during the crisis. This national, cross-sectional “COVID-Kids” study collected data from almost 500 parent–child dyads using standardized measures to better understand the effects of COVID exposure and impact on children’s quality of life and loneliness. Data were collected via social media from May to July 2020. According to parent proxy and child self-report, United States children experienced worse quality of life (p < 0.0001; d = 0.45 and 0.53) and greater child-reported loneliness (p < 0.0001) when compared to normative, healthy samples (i.e., children who do not have a chronic medical condition). Older children (r = 0.16, p = 0.001) and female children (r = 0.11, p = 0.02) reported greater loneliness. Higher child-reported family functioning scores were associated with better quality of life (r = 0.36, p < 0.0001) and less loneliness (r = −0.49, p < 0.0001). Moderated mediation analyses indicated the indirect effect of parent COVID impact on the association between COVID exposure and child quality of life was weaker in the context of better family functioning.
Relations between maternal panic over COVID-19 and children's depressive symptoms: the moderating role of children's daily routines

AUTHOR(S)
Muzi Yuan; Xiaohua Bian; Junsheng Liu (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Current Psychology
The sudden outbreak of COVID-19 and consequent quarantine policies have substantially altered family lives worldwide. Potential associations between parental negative emotional expressions towards the pandemic, family factors, and child psychological adjustment remain under-explored. Accordingly, the goal of the present study was to examine the relation between maternal panic over COVID-19 and children’s depressive symptoms, with a focus on the potential moderating role of children’s daily routines during a period of strict quarantine. Participants were N = 1,589 children (Mage = 13.13 years, SD = 1.54; 50.7% girls) and their mothers, from Zhengzhou, Henan Province, in Mainland China. Data were collected in April of 2020, when school closure policies were in effect. Mothers reported their panic over COVID-19 and children reported their depressive symptoms and daily routines during the quarantine period.
Parents' perspectives on distance learning mathematics during the COVID-19 pandemic: a phenomenological study in Indonesia

AUTHOR(S)
Muhamad Galang Isnawan; Azis ; Essa Eqal Almazroei

Published: January 2023   Journal: European Journal of Educational Research
‘Panic-gogy’ is a term that describes the educational situation during the pandemic due to the transformation phenomenon from face-to-face learning to distance learning. Various types of research are used to uncover the constraints of this phenomenon, but not many researchers use phenomenological studies with parents as participants. Therefore, we used a phenomenological study to describe parents’ views on the constraints, expectations, and approvals regarding the preparation of distance learning modules at the junior high school level (aged 13-15 years). Data collection was carried out using semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using NVivo-12-assisted thematic analysis.
Evaluating the effectiveness of the Supportive Parenting App on parental outcomes: randomized controlled trial

AUTHOR(S)
Shefaly Shorey; Evelyn Law; Thilagamangai (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Journal of Medical Internet Research

Adjusting to new or additional parenting responsibilities increases stress and affects parental well-being. Existing research has highlighted both parents’ desire to receive more support. It has also been found that receiving sufficient social support enhances parenting outcomes. With the increasing popularity of mobile health apps, a Supportive Parenting App (SPA) intervention was developed to fulfill the support needs of parents during the perinatal period.
 This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of the SPA on parental outcomes during the perinatal period.

Psychosocial work stress and parent-child bonding during the COVID-19 pandemic: clarifying the role of parental symptoms of depression and aggressiveness

AUTHOR(S)
Mirjam I. Koerber; Judith T. Mack; Lara Seefeld (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: BMC Public Health

Parental work stress and impaired mental health seem to have intensified during the current COVID-19 pandemic. Both can have a negative impact on parent-child bonding: psychosocial work stress in the course of a spillover effect from work to family and symptoms of impaired mental health as part of a crossover effect from parent to child. This potentially affects the child’s development in the long term. This cross-sectional study examined the relationship between psychosocial work stress and parent-child bonding during the early COVID-19 pandemic (May–June 2020). Symptoms of depression and aggressiveness were considered as mediators of this relationship. The sample consisted of employees in Eastern Germany (n = 380; 42.9% mothers, 57.1% fathers), aged 24–55 years, with children aged 0–36 months.

Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage mothers' provision of primary education to their children in England during COVID-19: recommendations for involving mothers in policy decision-making processes

AUTHOR(S)
Aliya Khalid; Lavinia Kamphausen; Kate Spencer-Bennett

Published: January 2023   Journal: Routledge Open Research
During COVID-19, children have suffered learning losses across the world which will likely be carried forward to the future. In England, research and various reports were conducted to understand the extent of learning loss so policy could be improved for a more equitable educational provision. Two key areas were highlighted because of these investigations. Firstly, children in marginalised communities suffered the greatest share of educational disadvantages during COVID-19. Secondly, there is a scarcity of knowledge around the processes surrounding educational environments of learners. This study focused on mothers as partners and facilitators of education especially during COVID-19. Interviews were conducted with eight mothers in England with Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage exploring their experiences of educating their primary school-aged children during COVID-19.
A win-win for all of us: COVID-19 sheds light on the essentialness of child care as key infrastructure

AUTHOR(S)
Owusua Yamoah; Sarah Balser; Callie Ogland-Hand (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Early Childhood Research Quarterly
Child care centers in the United States allow many parents and caregivers to work in and outside of the home and support the growth and development of children. Child care closures and COVID-19 mitigation measures at the onset of the pandemic heightened the need for and awareness of the role of child care as core infrastructure. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceived role and benefits of child care based on the lived experiences of parents/caregivers and staff navigating child care during the pandemic. It conducted in-depth qualitative interviews with parents/caregivers (n = 20) of children who attended child care and staff (n = 12) who were working at child care programs in Ohio from September to November 2020. Qualitative data were coded and analyzed through the lens of four frameworks (i.e., capabilities, developmental, economics, and mutualism) related to child well-being.
Parental decision-making on summer program enrollment: a mixed methods Covid-19 impact study

AUTHOR(S)
Roddrick Dugger; Layton Reesor-Oyer; Michael W. Beets (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Evaluation and Program Planning

The closure of childcare organizations (e.g. schools, childcare centers, afterschool programs, summer camps) during the Covid-19 pandemic impacted the health and wellbeing of families. Despite their reopening, parents may be reluctant to enroll their children in summer programming. Knowledge of the beliefs that underlie parental concerns will inform best practices for organizations that serve children. Parents (n = 17) participated in qualitative interviews (October 2020) to discuss Covid-19 risk perceptions and summer program enrollment intentions. Based on interview responses to perceived Covid-19 risk, two groups emerged for analysis- “Elevated Risk (ER)” and “Conditional Risk (CR)”. Themes were identified utilizing independent coding and constant-comparison analysis. Follow-up interviews (n = 12) in the Spring of 2021 evaluated the impact of vaccine availability on parent risk perceptions. Additionally, parents (n = 17) completed the Covid-19 Impact survey to assess perceived exposure (Range: 0–25) and household impact (Range: 2–60) of the pandemic. Scores were summed and averaged for the sample and by risk classification group.

Mother-infant emotional availability through the COVID-19 pandemic: examining continuity, stability, and bidirectional associations

AUTHOR(S)
Nila Shakiba; Gal Doron; Avigail Gordon-Hacker (et al.)

Published: January 2023   Journal: Infancy
The COVID-19 pandemic may impact the development of infants' social communication patterns with their caregivers. The current study examined continuity, stability, and bidirectional associations in maternal and infant dyadic Emotional Availability (EA) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 110 Israeli mother-infant dyads (51% girls) that were assessed prior to (Mage = 3.5 months) and during (Mage = 12.4 months) the pandemic.
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UNICEF Innocenti's Children and COVID-19 Library is a database collecting research from around the world on COVID-19 and its impacts on children and adolescents.

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