Interactions between Parents and Children: The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This cross-sectional study aimed to assess the impact of the pandemic on parent-child interactions. Parents of 466 children between 3 and 10 years of age answered a questionnaire via WhatsApp and social media platforms, addressing the frequency of allowing the use of electronic devices, providing help with schoolwork, and whether children witnessed conflicts between their parents and between other adults. Independent variables included: age, gender, and education of both parents and children; family income; the number of income contributors that reside in the household; responsibility for domestic activities and if these chores affected their routine. Factors associated with changes in parent-child interactions were examined using multinomial regression models. An unadjusted analysis of the independent variables was carried out, with those having a p-value <0.20 included in the adjusted model. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals were obtained. Following the onset of the pandemic, parents provided more assistance with schoolwork (343 – 73.6%) and allowed electronic devices more frequently (358 – 76.8%), but the recurrence of arguing with one another (256 – 54.9%) remained unchanged. Significant changes in parent-child interactions occurred due to the pandemic.