Background

To date, several studies have shown that parenting stress, a kind of role strain, is related to child maltreatment. However, few studies have examined how the effects of crises, such as negative pandemic-related events on the household, may be related to parenting stress and maltreatment-related behavior.

Objective

This study examines the impact of negative Covid-related events on parenting stress and parenting behaviors during a period that was likely to have been a peak point of stress for many parents during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Participants

Respondents were female caregivers (N = 720) of children under the age of six located in the Midwestern United States.

Results

Three or more Covid-related impacts on the household were positively associated with parenting stress (B = 0.177, p < 0.05). Parenting stress fully mediated the weak relationship between these impacts and maltreatment-related behavior. Mothers of different employment statuses, including those who were recently laid off or who chose to stay at home, did not have significantly different probabilities of parenting stress or maltreatment-related behaviors. Contrary to theory, similar null results were found across other socio-demographic variables.

Conclusions

These null findings suggest that crises have effects that encompass family systems, potentially raising parenting stress levels in many groups that are typically considered low-risk for child maltreatment. Results have implications for scholarship on parenting stress, the targeting of social supports to mothers of young children, and rapid interventions to reduce stress, such as the stimulus check relief program.

中文翻译：

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孩子们在禁闭期间的糟糕时光：负面大流行事件、育儿压力和虐待相关育儿行为之间的关系

背景

迄今为止，多项研究表明，养育压力是一种角色紧张，与虐待儿童有关。然而，很少有研究调查危机的影响，例如对家庭的负面流行病相关事件，可能与养育压力和虐待相关行为有关。

客观的

本研究调查了在 Covid-19 大流行期间可能成为许多父母压力高峰期的负面 Covid 相关事件对育儿压力和育儿行为的影响。

参加者

 受访者是位于美国中西部的 6 岁以下儿童的女性看护者 ( N = 720)。

结果

三个或更多与 Covid 相关的家庭影响与养育压力呈正相关（B  = 0.177，p  < 0.05）。育儿压力完全调节了这些影响与虐待相关行为之间的微弱关系。不同就业状况的母亲，包括那些最近被解雇或选择留在家里的母亲，在养育压力或虐待相关行为方面的概率没有显着差异。与理论相反，在其他社会人口变量中发现了类似的无效结果。

结论

这些无效的调查结果表明，危机的影响涵盖家庭系统，可能会提高许多通常被认为儿童虐待风险较低的群体的育儿压力水平。结果对有关育儿压力的学术研究、针对幼儿母亲的社会支持以及减轻压力的快速干预措施（如刺激支票救济计划）具有重要意义。