Parent Psychological Distress and Behavior in Relation to Child Temperament During COVID-19

Alexandra Seigies, Pace University

Abstract

Parenting is a difficult task that is influenced by internal and external factors. The COVID-19 pandemic presented new challenges to the parenting role, including health concerns, economic strain, and the added stressors of caregiving. This study examines the interplay between parent psychological distress, parenting behavior, and child temperament (i.e., negative affectivity, surgency, and effortful control) in the COVID-19 context. In the fall of 2020, the researchers disseminated an online Qualtrics questionnaire to parents (n = 572), 18–67 years old, of children, 13–47 months old, in the United States. Results show that parenting behaviors and parent psychological distress were related during this time period, within this sample. Parents with higher psychological distress placed less importance on positive parenting behaviors. More specifically, parents with higher anxiety placed less importance on general welfare and protection, responsivity, and sensitivity. Parenting behaviors also related to child temperament. Parents who placed more importance on positive parenting endorsed having children with higher effortful control and surgency. Parents who placed less importance on positive parenting reported having children with higher negative affectivity. The relationships between parent psychological distress and child temperament suggest that parents with higher psychological distress report having children with higher negative affectivity and surgency. Parents with lower psychological distress report having children with higher effortful control. COVID-19 impact moderated the relationship between parent psychological distress and child effortful control, with higher COVID-19 impact lessening this relationship. These findings can inform preventive and interventive actions in future pandemics and/or analogous calamities directly impacting child and family experiences. For example, this research may inform more personalized interventions based on parents’ perception of their child’s temperament. This may lead to more focus on the parent, the child, or the dyad in the clinical setting depending on the interplay of factors specific to that particular dyad.

Subject Area

Psychology|Clinical psychology|Mental health|Individual & family studies

Recommended Citation

Seigies, Alexandra, "Parent Psychological Distress and Behavior in Relation to Child Temperament During COVID-19" (2023). ETD Collection for Pace University. AAI30640183.
https://digitalcommons.pace.edu/dissertations/AAI30640183

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