Difficulties Imposed on the Parent–Child Relationship Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The present study tested whether emotionally burdened parents due to the COVID-19 pandemic might appraise their relationship with their children more negatively. The current cross-sectional study was circulated through social media. A total of 265 respondents took part in the study. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the association between predictor variables and the parent–child relationship. This study’s results report that older fathers with higher levels of COVID-19 related fear are more likely to appraise negatively their relationship with their children. Therefore, this study suggests the need for family-level strategies to address better the psychological aspects related to the pandemic outbreak.

The novel global public health emergency due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has altered most people’s everyday life. In particular, parents who were found to report more difficulties in dealing with household and child-care responsibilities were also more stressed during this period, showing that the quarantine limitations profoundly influenced the family’s well-being (Brooks et al., 2020). As Alon et al. (2020) argue, before the pandemic, women spent more time on child-care and household, and they keep on doing so even during the lockdown. For parents who attempted to work from home and at the same time home school their children and contribute to household responsibilities, this situation proved extremely demanding (Harth & Mitte, 2020). Despite women’s higher load, men also started to spend more hours on child-care and household during the COVID-19 outbreak (Hamel & Salganicoff, 2020). However, according to Harth and Mitte (2020), men seemed to suffer more from inter-role conflict as they seemed less familiarized and less capable to handle the role of the caretaker and employee concurrently.

Previous research data report that the pressure of parenting during disasters may intensify caregiver burden and mental health symptoms, possibly jeopardizing the parent–child relationship (Masten & Narayan, 2012; Kerns et al., 2014). Furthermore, according to Russell et al. (2020), COVID-19 has significantly influenced parents’ general stress than their non-parent counterparts. Thus, the emotional effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on parents and children’s relationships is an entirely new and unpredicted situation as during the lockdown, parents and children found themselves facing new difficulties and stresses (Spinelli, Lionetti, Setti, & Fasolo, 2020). Hence, this study’s research questions focus on the potential association between the emotional impact of the COVID-19 and parents’ reports of child–parent relationship outcomes.

Difficulties Imposed on Families by the COVID-19 Pandemic

As Chandola et al. (2019) argue, working mothers with two children in the UK experienced more stress than the average person even in pre-COVID-19 conditions. Other research data report that mothers and fathers of children under 18 years of age experienced more anxiety due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, 32% and 57% of fathers and mothers, respectively, stated that their emotional stability was worse because of the COVID-19 outbreak, implying that mothers may be faced with even more difficulties (Hamel & Salganicoff, 2020).

When quarantine began in Greece, families’ living conditions and especially parents’ conditions, were greatly affected by many factors. Parents had to manage their homes, take care of their children as well as home-school their children. Many had to work from home, while many others lost their jobs permanently or for a specific period of time. Thus, parents’ ways of coping and their role in the family became crucial as children only had their parents around them to support and encourage them. This situation in several cases increased parents' stress more as they had to cope with many other everyday duties and routines. This could also negatively affect their relationship with their children, (Brooks et al., 2020; Parlapani et al., 2020). Research findings show that more anxious and worried parents might find it difficult to support their children properly and deal with their children’s queries and fears (DiGiovanni, Conley, Chiu, & Zaborski, 2004). Spinelli et al., (2020) argue that in Italy, more overburdened parents were less engaged in their children’s pursuits, influencing children’s effective emotion regulation. Past research also shows that it is difficult for stressed parents to acknowledge and respond to their child’s necessities more sensitively (Abidin, 1992).

Overall, research findings show that difficulties imposed on families by the COVID-19 pandemic may influence them in a profound way (Brooks et al., 2020). However, few studies from the outbreak of the COVID-19 have examined the effect of this situation on the parent–child relationship (Spinelli et al., 2020). Also, male gender and older age are significant risk factors for higher mortality due to coronavirus (Docherty et al., 2020). In addition, research data report that household conditions (number of children in the family) affected parenting anxiety as parents living in such conditions perceived their relationship with their children as less enjoy full (Spinelli et al., 2020).

The Current Study

In Greece, during lockdown, people were permitted to go outside only for certain reasons, which were either sent in a number set out for this reason or having with them a movement permit paper. There were strict checks and penalties for individuals without the proper paperwork. No public venues or events were allowed. Some businesses were allowed to operate, such as pharmacies, banks, supermarkets, etc. This was a novel experience almost for all the Greek residents, while at the same time, it affected family, social life, education, and occupational life as well (Parlapani et al., 2020). Although there are no definite results regarding the current pandemic’s psychological consequences, ongoing research supports that COVID-19 related anxiety and fear can significantly impact various aspects of life (Nikopoulou et al., 2020).

Periods of uncertainty with an undefined endpoint may represent a stressful experience for families. Taking into account that even in the pre-pandemic period, everyday life was already stressful for parents (Chandola, Booker, Kumari, & Benzeval, 2019). The present study examined the potential for COVID-19 related fear, as an emotional effect of the COVID-19 outbreak, to impact parent–child relationship during mandatory confinement. Thus, we tested whether emotionally burdened parents due to the COVID-19 pandemic might appraise their relationship with their children more negatively. Furthermore, acknowledging factors that may influence the parent–children relationship during this pandemic lockdown may ameliorate parental involvement in a child’s everyday life experiences, especially during these demanding life circumstances. According to previous research findings, the COVID-19 related fear and the household conditions (number of children in the family) were expected to affect significantly the parent–child relationship (e.g., Dalton, Rapa, & Stein, 2020; Nikopoulou et al., 2020; Parlapani et al., 2020; Skapinakis et al.,2020; Spinelli et al., 2020). In addition, older men were expected to be more emotionally influenced by this extreme situation as the coronavirus pandemic is shining a cruel light on men’s health internationally (Docherty et al., 2020).

Method

Participants and Procedure

The current cross-sectional study was administrated from September 1 till September 15, 2020. The questionnaire (in Google forms) was circulated through social media (e.g., Facebook, parents support groups). Potential respondents were called to participate voluntarily and anonymously answer the questionnaire. Participants’ informed consent was obtained on the first page of the study. All respondents were free to quit the study at any point before submitting the results. Willingness to participate and being an adult were the inclusion criteria of this study. This study followed all principles of the Declaration of Helsinki on Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects and all the ethical instructions and directions of the institution to which the researcher belongs.

Measures

Explanatory Variables

Direct questions were used to assess the sociodemographic variables including age (reported by participants in a numerical entry box) and gender (male, female, transgender, and other—with specification required).

Also, respondents completed the Greek version of the following self-administered psychometric scale: The Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S). In particular, the Greek version of the FCV-19S was used to assess COVID-19 related fear (Nikopoulou et al., 2020; Tsipropoulou et al., 2020). The FCV-19S was designed in 2020 by Ahorsu et al. (2020) to assess the level of fear related to SARS-Cov-2. According to Parlapani et al., (2020), the scale proved to be a valuable tool for examining COVID-19–related fear in Iran, Turkey, Italy, Russia, and Belarus. The FCV-19S consists of seven items (e.g., item 1, “I am most afraid of coronavirus-19”; item 4, “I am afraid of losing my life because of coronavirus-19”) assessing fear towards COVID-19. It is a self-report evaluation rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree). Total scores vary from 7 to 35, with higher scores indicating greater fear of the COVID-19 disease. The cut-off score equal to or above 16.5 indicates high levels of COVID-19 related fear (Nikopoulou et al., 2020). The original scale showed very good internal consistency (a = .82) (Ahorsu et al., 2020). The version used in the current study provided sufficient internal consistency (α = .79).

Outcome Measure

Further, a subscale of the Parenting Stress Index Short Form (PSI) was used, namely, the Parent–child Dysfunctional interaction domain, containing 15 items (PSI; Abidin, 1992). The particular subscale examines the degree of parents’ agreement or disagreement (in a 5-point rating scale) with statements describing the parent–child relationship as difficult to manage. The PSI scale has been considerably validated across countries, and its validity and reliability were verified in numerous empirical studies (Suttora, Spinelli, & Monzani, 2013). The Greek version of the scale used reported good internal consistency (a = .81) (Gerardou, 2013). In this study, the scale exhibited good reliability (a = .78).

Data Analysis

Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the demographic variables of the sample. Cronbach’s alpha was used to verify the reliability of the scales. An independent samples t-test was used to compare FCV-19S in female and male participants and parent–child dysfunctional interaction in female and male participants. Pearson correlation analysis was applied to examine the relationship between the variables of interest. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to examine if the variables of the researchers' interest (FCV-19S, gender, age, and number of children in the family) could predict a significant amount of variance in parent–child dysfunctional interaction.

Results

Data screening techniques were applied before the main statistical analysis. The normal range for skewness and kurtosis is considered to be between +2 and −2 for normal distribution according to the criteria by George and Mallory (2010). That assumption is satisfied, as the values for skewness were found between −1.45 and 1.03 and for kurtosis between −0.81 and 0.55. No outliers were detected.

Sociodemographic Characteristics

A total of 265 respondents took part in the study: 210 were female (71.9%), and 55 were male (20.7%). Most of the respondents had a Bachelor’s (university) degree (68.3%), were married, and had at least two children (Table 1). An independent samples t-test was used to compare FCV-19S in female and male participants. Higher levels of COVID-19 related fear were assessed based on the proposed cut-off scores of the continuous scale FCV-19S (Nikopoulou et al., 2020). There was no significant difference in the scores of female and male participants t(263) = −1.56, p = .120. An independent samples t-test was also performed to compare parent–child dysfunctional interaction in female and male participants. There was a significant difference in female and male participants’ scores t(263) = 2.32, p = .02 (Table 2).

Table 1.

Demographic Characteristics Presented as Frequencies (%).

	N = 200
Age
26–35 years old	25 (9.4)
36–45 years old	152 (57.1)
46–55 years old	77 (28.9)
More than 56 years old	11 (4.1)
Educational level
Gymnasio—secondary education	3 (1.1)
Lykeion—secondary education	32 (12)
Bachelor	151 (56.8)
Master degree or PhD	79 (29.7)
Marital status
Married	247 (92.9)
Divorced/separated	16 (6)
Widowed	1 (.4)
Registered partnership	1 (.4)
Number of children in the family
1	55 (20.7)
2	149(56)
3	41 (15.4)
4 and more than four	20 (7.5)

Table 2.

Participants’ Categorization Based on FCV-19S and Parent–Child Dysfunctional Interaction.

		Female	Male
FCV-19S	Normal fear	109	32
	High fear	101	23
	Normal fear–Mean (SD)	12 (2.81)	11.78 (2.74)
	High fear–Mean (SD)	20.86 (3.66)	19.47 (2.6)
		Mean (SD)	Mean (SD)
Parent–child dysfunctional interaction		21.8 (6.14)	24.16 (8.15)

FCV-19S, Fear of COVID-19 Scale (cut-off scores: normal fear <16.5; high fear ≥16.5).

Correlation Analysis

Pearson correlation analysis was applied to examine the relationship between the variables of interest after the statistical assumptions were checked. The results are presented in Table 3. Parent–child dysfunctional interaction was found to be negatively correlated with gender (r₂₆₃ = −.14, p < .05) and age (r₂₆₃ = −.15, p < .05), while COVID-19 related fear was found to be negatively correlated with number of children in the family (r₂₆₃ = −.19), p < .05) and positively correlated with parent–child dysfunctional interaction (r₂₆₃ = .14, p < .05).

Table 3.

Correlation Matrix for Main Study’s Variables.

	1	2	3	4	5
1. Gender
2. Age	.145
3. Number of children in the family	.460	.226
4. Parent–child dysfunctional interaction	.021*	.012*	.790
5. COVID-19S	.120	.161	.002**	.021*

Note. *p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001.

Regression Analysis

Multiple linear regression analysis was used to examine the association between predictor variables and the parent–child dysfunctional subscale (PSI; Abidin, 1995). The total score obtained from the parent–child dysfunctional interaction subscale was used as the dependent variable. The assumptions associated with a linear regression model were tested and not violated (Tabachnick & Fidell, 2001). Specifically, tests to see if the data met the assumption of collinearity implied that multicollinearity was not a concern (Fear of COVID-19 Scale = .96, VIF = 1.03; gender = .97, VIF = 1.02; age = .94, VIF = 1.05; number of children in the families of participants = .95, VIF = 1.04).The assumption of independent errors was met (Durbin–Watson value = 1.86). The analysis showed that there was a collective significant effect between FCV-19S, gender, and age in the parent–child dysfunctional interaction subscale (F(4,260) = 4.48, p < .05, R2 = .078). The individual predictors were examined further and indicated that FCV-19S (t = 2.53, p = .012), gender (t = −2.43, p = .016), and age (t = 2.18, p = .03) were significant predictors in the model (Table 4).

Table 4.

Linear Regression of Variables Predicting Parent–Child Dysfunctional Interaction.

Variable	b	SE (b)	β	t	p
COVID-19S	.194	.077	.156	2.53	.012
Gender	−2.42	.995	−.148	−2.43	.016
Age	1.28	.586	.132	2.18	.03
Number of children in the family	.403	.391	.063	1.02	.305

Discussion

During the COVID-19 pandemic, families found themselves in a unique situation as unexpected difficulties influenced their well-being. This study tested whether emotionally burdened parents due to the COVID-19 pandemic might appraise their relationship with their children more negatively. This study’s results show that older fathers who already endure higher levels of COVID-19 related fear appraise their relationship with their children negatively. Thus, this study’s findings emphasize the need for older fathers, in particular, to adequately regulate their COVID-19 related emotions in these challenging circumstances as a way to improve the parent–child relationship during the pandemic outbreak (Rutherford, Wallace, Laurent, & Mayes, 2015). This result coincides with previous research data reporting that older men were particularly hit by the COVID-19 crisis (Docherty et al., 2020).

This study’s findings imply that although fathers less frequently define themselves as the primary caregiver (Shorer & Leibovich, 2020), during the pandemic, their role seems to be changing affecting their relationship with their children as well. This is a significant result as it confirms that this unexpected situation has put considerable stress on fathers’ relationships with their children, which may also negatively influence family well-being (Spinelli et al., 2020). Therefore, this study suggests the need for family-level strategies to address better the psychological aspects related to the pandemic outbreak. During mandatory confinement, it is highly likely for all social roles to combine into one setting making it difficult to simultaneously handle different roles such as breadwinner and caretaker (Harth & Mitte, 2020). Research findings in Greece show that especially for older people, household tasks are considered women’s main responsibility despite any societal changes, and fathers are expected to play a minor, mainly supportive, role as regards to the household and child-care responsibilities. On the contrary, mothers take on the duties and strains of the household and child-rearing responsibilities even if they are employed as well (i.e.,Maridaki-Kassotaki, 2000). However, the pandemic lockdown inflicted more strains in parents’ everyday lives as they are called to take additional educational and caregiving roles while attempting to balance their own lives, job responsibilities, or deal with their unemployment.

Living in a positive and emotionally stable family environment can significantly reduce children’s vulnerability to various stress sources (Rutherford et al., 2015; Slone & Mann, 2016). Although research data already show that the pandemic outbreak has greatly influenced parents and especially women (Parlapani et al., 2020; Spinelli et al., 2020), this study’s results report that older fathers with higher levels of COVID-19 related fear are more likely to appraise negatively their relationship with their children. Parents' difficulties during COVID-19 lockdown reported in previous studies, such as balancing working hours at home and daily stresses associated with parenting 24/24 (Spinelli et al., 2020), may also explain this study’s findings. The consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak, such as the closing down of schools and the lack of other helping resources such as grandparents, might add a significant caregiver burden to the father–child relationship (Spinelli et al., 2020; Wang & Zhao, 2020). However, the COVID-19 outbreak offers a chance to emphasize more on men’s absence from care-taking roles (Harth & Mitte, 2020) and provides the opportunity to alter dominant gender stereotypes (Rudman & Glick, 2008).

To conclude, this study’s results may be useful for policymakers as regards to parents’ regulation and management of their own stress. Health professionals may also find it beneficial to consider the COVID-19 related fear consequences on parents’ emotion regulation efficiency and help them improve their emotional awareness. Parenting interventions that entail mood management and stress coping skills were described to improve parent–child relationship outcomes (Gavita & Joyce, 2008). In addition, parents’ stress-preventing strategies may strengthen children’s future resilience to traumatic events.

Limitations

This study’s results are based on a reasonably small and non-diverse sample of Greek participants. Therefore, it could be repeated on a larger sample. Future research could emphasize samples with greater sociodemographic diversity and an equal female ratio to male participants. A longitudinal exploration of parent–child interactions could provide more precise data regarding the impact of the pandemic outbreak in family processes as cross-sectional studies prevent a deeper understanding of the nature of the causal relationship between study variables.

Conclusion

This study’s findings overall highlight the significant role of specific factors influencing the parent–child relationship during these stressful circumstances. All in all, children’s emotional adjustment is interrelated with their parents’ emotional regulation, and prevention policies and intervention programs may find it useful to consider and address them. Future studies may emphasize fathers' greater participation in child-care and household responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Author Biography

Grigoropoulos Iraklis earned his PhD in Social Psychology from Aristotle University, Greece. He also holds an M.Sc. in developmental psychopathology (Medical school Aristotle University Greece), an M.Sc. in counseling psychology (Manchester Metropolitan University UK), and a Degree in Psychology (Aristotle University Greece). He serves as a full-time laboratory teaching staff in the Early Childhood Education and Care Department of International Hellenic University teaching psychology courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate level.

ORCID iD

Iraklis Grigoropoulos https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5987-5483