Previous studies on the impact of COVID-19 indicate that pandemic-related distress increases risks for child maltreatment, although data on the scope of this problem are still scarce. Here, we assessed whether parents with toddlers (n = 206) more often used harsh discipline during the lockdown in the Netherlands compared to a matched parent sample collected prior to the pandemic (n = 1,030). Parents were matched on background characteristics using propensity score matching. We found that harsh parenting levels were significantly elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels. Harsh parenting behaviors with a low prevalence before COVID-19 increased most strongly: shaking, calling names, and calling the child stupid. These results suggest that parental tolerance for children’s disobedience is lower under the adverse circumstances of COVID-19 and, as a result, abusive parenting responses are more difficult to inhibit. Thus, a lockdown seems to increase risks for child maltreatment, underscoring the need for effective support strategies for at-risk families.

先前关于 COVID-19 影响的研究表明，与流行病相关的痛苦会增加虐待儿童的风险，尽管有关该问题范围的数据仍然很少。在这里，我们评估了与大流行之前收集的匹配父母样本相比，在荷兰的封锁期间，有幼儿的父母 ( n = 206) 是否更经常使用严厉的管教 ( n= 1,030)。使用倾向得分匹配对父母的背景特征进行匹配。我们发现，与大流行前的水平相比，严苛的养育水平显着提高。在 COVID-19 之前流行率较低的严厉育儿行为增加最为强烈：摇晃、骂人、骂孩子愚蠢。这些结果表明，在 COVID-19 的不利情况下，父母对儿童不服从的容忍度较低，因此，虐待性的养育反应更难以抑制。因此，封锁似乎增加了虐待儿童的风险，强调需要为高危家庭制定有效的支持策略。