Paternal Depression & Anxiety During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has changed family functioning and increased parenting demands, leading to increased risk for poor psychosocial outcomes. Emerging evidence underscores the significant impact the pandemic has had on maternal mental health concerns. In contrast, paternal mental health has yet to be described. The current study describes the prevalence of depression and anxiety in fathers of young children as well as associated risk and protective factors.Methods: As part of the Parenting during the Pandemic study, fathers (N = 70) of children age 0-8 years old self-reported on mental health symptoms and additional concerns, while mothers (N = 236) provided a partner-report of father perinatal depression.Results:. Clinically significant depression (37.1%) and anxiety (22.9%) were prevalent in fathers. Partner reported perinatal depression was prevalent in 61.9% of fathers. Higher financial strain and previous mental health history were associated with increased risk of both depression andanxiety. Maternal report of paternal depression was associated with higher financial strain, greater number of children in the home, and lower maternal-reported marital quality. Limitations: The current study used cross-sectional data from an online cohort. The sample size limits the generalizability of the findings; future research should continue evaluating this important topic with larger samples.Conclusions: Compared to pre-pandemic population comparisons, paternal depression and anxiety are elevated in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Intervention recommendations and implications are discussed.

“Any advice for a pre-dad who is freaking out?”: A qualitative analysis of paternal perinatal experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic using the reddit forum predaddit

“…Little information is available in the extant literature on fathers' functioning or needs during and post-pandemic. However, findings of the current study are consistent with emerging quantitative literature by our group and others that suggests the pandemic is having an adverse effect on some fathers due to COVID-19-related factors, including increased financial stressors (Cameron et al, 2020), service disruption or exclusion, and social isolation (Vasilevski et al, 2021). Within the current study, uncertainty about COVID-19 and the impact on the perinatal experience led to increased self-reported fears and anxieties.…”

“…These programs have proven to be especially important during the pandemic with the reduction of in-person service access (Morris et al, 2021). Our results suggest that fathers would also benefit from services that address increased stress, anxiety, and depression during the pandemic (Cameron et al, 2020); however, given the substantial use and utility of the predaddit forum, fathers may additionally benefit from programs that encourage anonymous, clinician-mediated interactions (e.g., forums) to promote open discussion and disclosure of personal concerns. The current study has additionally demonstrated the positivity and fulfillment expressed by many fathers through hearing perspectives and advice directly from those fathers with lived experience.…”

“…Notably, the stressors of becoming a father have been magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic due to public health restrictions that have affected daily family life and service access (DeYoung and Mangum, 2021;Vasilevski et al, 2021). Emerging literature during the pandemic suggests a nearly 10-fold increase in paternal mental health concerns (Cameron et al, 2020) from pre-pandemic metaanalyses and systematic reviews (e.g., Cameron et al, 2016;Leach et al, 2016). Parental depression during the pandemic has also been found to be the single most important predictor of lower quality parenting (Roos et al, 2021), highlighting the significant need to address mental health concerns and related risk factors to prevent negative outcomes for children and families.…”

Lockdown babies- Birth and new parenting experiences during the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown in South Africa

“…Our findings on the prominence of probable depression (63% mothers, 29% fathers), are higher than the usual in this context (33%), which are higher than worldwide pre-Covid-19 estimates (13%) [5]. This finding is mirrored by Canadian study which found increased levels of depression amoungst new fathers [14] and a report from an Australian postnatal support hotline that calls increased 75% during the first week of lockdown [15], indicating an increase in new parents requiring mental health support. Our study showed that mental health issues affected many respondents who were younger, had negative emotions about their birth, struggled with breastfeeding, could not access health care and had lockdown related financial concerns.…”

“…This finding is mirrored by Canadian study which found increased levels of depression amoungst new fathers [14] and a report from an Australian postnatal support hotline that calls increased 75% during the first week of lockdown [15], indicating an increase in new parents requiring mental health support.…”