Children and COVID-19 Research Library

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic represents an unprecedented traumatic stressor to mental health. Psychological distress is considered a reliable proxy for psychopathology and can be negatively influenced by childhood trauma through sensitization effects. Emotion dysregulation has been proposed as a potential mediator of this mechanism. This paper aimed to test this hypothesis in a national Italian sample assessed in the early phase of the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak.

The global COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented effect on human behavior and well-being. Demographic factors and personality traits have been shown to independently influence whether individuals adopt adaptive or maladaptive coping responses. However, to date, researchers have not considered how demographics and personality could interact to influence COVID-19 coping responses. In a sample of 516 North American young adults, this study found direct links from two demographic factors (i.e., income and having children) and from multiple personality traits to adaptive and maladaptive COVID-19 coping responses. It also found that personality indirectly linked a broader range of demographic factors (income, age, gender, having children) with COVID-19 coping responses.

Although medical literature shows that children are minimally susceptible to 2019-Corona virus disease (COVID-19), they are hit the hardest by psychosocial impact of this pandemic. Being quarantined in homes and institutions may impose greater psychological burden than the physical sufferings caused by the virus. School closure, lack of outdoor activity, aberrant dietary and sleeping habits are likely to disrupt children’s usual lifestyle and can potentially promote monoto- ny, distress, impatience, annoyance and varied neuropsychiatric manifestations. Incidences of domestic violence, child abuse, adulterated online contents are on the rise. Children of single parent and frontline workers suffer unique problems. The children from marginalized communities are particularly susceptible to the infection and may suffer from extended ill-consequences of this pandemic, such as child labor, child trafficking, child marriage, sexual exploitation and death etc. Parents, pediatricians, psychologists, social workers, hospital authorities, government and non-governmental organizations have important roles to play to mitigate the psychosocial ill-effects of COVID-19 on children and adolescents. To provide the basic amenities, social security, medical care, and to minimize the educational inequities among the children of the different strata of the society are foremost priorities.