The effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on parents: A call to adopt urgent measures.

Fontanesi, Lilybeth; Marchetti, Daniela; Mazza, Cristina; Giandomenico, Serena Di; Roma, Paolo; Verrocchio, Maria Cristina

doi:10.1037/tra0000672

Cited by 313 publications

(351 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…2015), increases in child difficulties during the pandemic (Fontanesi et al . 2020) are likely to adversely affect parents' stress and ability to cope. Further, decreases in services for young children with IDD/ASD as a result of COVID‐19 are likely to have detrimental short‐term and long‐term consequences given that the early childhood years represent a critical window for intervention due to brain plasticity and the potential for rapid developmental gains (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development 2017; National Research Council 2001; Reichow and Wolery 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Working parents have reported incredible strain on their time, resources and ability to manage the day‐to‐day needs of parenting and homeschooling (Fontanesi et al . 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, Fontanesi et al . (2020) conducted a study of 1126 families in Italy to understand the impact of COVID‐19 on parents and children. Fontanesi et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fontanesi et al . 's (2020) data suggest that parents of children with mental or physical disabilities reported higher levels of parental burnout and perceived less social support than did parents of children without disabilities. Further, parents of children with mental and physical disabilities were more likely to report changes in their child's behaviour, such as distractibility, inability to concentrate, irritability and general discomfort.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fontanesi et al . (2020) conclude that the pandemic and quarantine place increased stress on parents, especially those parenting children with special needs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Examining the impact of COVID‐19 in ethnically diverse families with young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Neece

McIntyre

Fenning

2020

J intellect Disabil Res

252

290

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Background The COVID‐19 pandemic introduced challenges to families with young children with developmental delays. Beyond the widespread concerns surrounding illness, loss of employment and social isolation, caregivers are responsible for overseeing their children's educational and therapeutic programmes at home often without the much needed support of professionals. Method The present study sought to examine the impact of COVID‐19 in 77 ethnically, linguistically and socioeconomically diverse families with young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDDs) in California and Oregon, who were participating in larger intervention studies. Parents responded to five interview questions about the impact of the pandemic, services for their child, silver linings or positive aspects, coping and their concerns about the long‐term impact of the pandemic. Results Parents reported that their biggest challenge was being at home caring for their children with the loss of many essential services. Parents reported some positive aspects of the pandemic, especially being together as a family. Although there were positive aspects of the situation, many parents expressed concern about long‐term impacts of the pandemic on their children's development, given the loss of services, education and social engagement opportunities. Conclusion Results suggest that parents of young children with IDD report significant challenges at home during the pandemic. Professional support, especially during the reopening phases, will be critical to support family well‐being and child developmental outcomes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Working parents have reported incredible strain on their time, resources and ability to manage the day‐to‐day needs of parenting and homeschooling (Fontanesi et al . 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, Fontanesi et al . (2020) conducted a study of 1126 families in Italy to understand the impact of COVID‐19 on parents and children. Fontanesi et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Fontanesi et al . (2020) conclude that the pandemic and quarantine place increased stress on parents, especially those parenting children with special needs.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Examining the impact of COVID‐19 in ethnically diverse families with young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Neece

McIntyre

Fenning

2020

J intellect Disabil Res

252

290

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Analysis of the SPARK study COVID‐19 parent survey: Early impact of the pandemic on access to services, child/parent mental health, and benefits of online services

Bhat

2021

Autism Research

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Children with ASD receive a multitude of educational, medical, and therapeutic services. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, all of these services came to a complete halt following strict lockdowns. Many services have resumed in a hybrid format using face to face and virtual modes of delivery. This study describes findings from the COVID-19 impact survey administered at the onset of the pandemic in a subgroup of families from the SPARK cohort (N = 6393), one of the largest ASD cohorts in the US. The differential early impact of COVID-19 on various subgroups of children with ASD and their families was examined. Caregivers of children and adolescents with ASD between 19 months and 18 years completed an online survey inquiring about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on access to services, parent concerns about the same, impact on child's ASD-related behaviors, child, and parent mental health, and the benefits/potential benefits of online/ future online services. Analysis revealed that certain demographic (age, income/ SES) and child-related factors (repetitive behaviors, language, functional, cognitive, and motor impairments, and child's understanding), as well as parent's past mental health were associated with/predicted greater service disruptions, greater ASD-related behaviors, and greater negative impact on parent mental health. In conclusion, younger children, children from low-income families, and children with greater impairment severity (more severe repetitive behaviors, language, cognitive, function, language, and motor impairments) were more negatively impacted by the pandemic through service disruptions, increased ASD-related behaviors, parent health/family impact, and found online interactions to be less beneficial. Lay SummaryThe SPARK study impact survey shows that at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, parents reported significant service disruptions, negative impact on their child's ASD-related behaviors as well as their own mental health; which was greater in families with younger children, children with greater ASD severity, and children from low-income families. Majority of families did not report significant benefits of online services whereas some families did. Low-income families were hopeful about receiving benefits through future online services. Overall, these findings have important implications for future clinical care delivery and healthcare policies to ensure that healthcare services are not interrupted during a potential resurgence of COVID-19 or other pandemics. A combination of inperson and online healthcare and family support services must be implemented to prevent negative health impacts in the future.

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Resilience, and positive parenting in parents of children with syndromic autism and intellectual disability. Evidence from the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on family's quality of life and parent–child relationships

et al. 2022

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Family quality of life (FQoL) outcomes collected during the first year of COVID-19 has been combined with 2018 data to estimate the outbreak's impact on parental outcomes on a sample of 230 families with syndromic autistic children and those with intellectual disabilities (IDs). Despite challenges imposed by the COVID-19 outbreak, our study found that FQoL outcomes reported by participating parents during the first year of COVID-19 appears to be similar to ratings from a prepandemic study of families with the same conditions. Parents of children in our sample generally displayed a stable functioning trajectory as measured by the validated FQoL instrument. Across syndromic autistic groups considered, families reported that their relationships with their children were positive. Our findings provide evidence of families' resilience which might explain the presence of positive parentchild interactions during COVID-19. Exploring mechanisms which would explain how families with autistic and ID children confront, manage disruptive experiences, and buffer COVID-19 induced stress is a fruitful direction for future research.

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The effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on parents: A call to adopt urgent measures.

Cited by 313 publications

References 8 publications

Examining the impact of COVID‐19 in ethnically diverse families with young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Examining the impact of COVID‐19 in ethnically diverse families with young children with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Analysis of the SPARK study COVID‐19 parent survey: Early impact of the pandemic on access to services, child/parent mental health, and benefits of online services

Resilience, and positive parenting in parents of children with syndromic autism and intellectual disability. Evidence from the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on family's quality of life and parent–child relationships

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