Brief Report: A Cross-Sectional Study of Anxiety Levels and Concerns of Chinese Families of Children With Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Post-first-wave of COVID-19
IPC
- Su, Xueyun Department of Early Childhood Education, Faculty of Education and Changning Maternity and Infant Health Hospital, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
- Cai, Ru Ying Aspect Research Centre for Autism Practice, Autism Spectrum Australia, Melbourne, VIC, Australia. School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Uljarević, Mirko Faculty of Medicine, Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, Dentistry, and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Van Herwegen, Jo ORCID Department of Psychology and Human Development, Institute of Education, University College London, London, United Kingdom
- Dukes, Daniel ORCID Institute of Special Education, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland. Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Yang, Yufang Department of Early Childhood Education, Faculty of Education and Changning Maternity and Infant Health Hospital, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
- Peng, Xiaomei Department of Early Childhood Education, Faculty of Education and Changning Maternity and Infant Health Hospital, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
- Samson, Andrea C. ORCID Institute of Special Education, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland. Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland. Faculty of Psychology, Unidistance Suisse, Brig, Switzerland
- 20.09.2021
Published in:
- Frontiers in Psychiatry. - Frontiers Media SA. - 2021, vol. 12, p. 708465
English
The COVID-19 pandemic has a multifaceted impact on mental health due to ill health, restrictions and lockdowns, and loss of employment and institutional support. COVID-19 may disproportionally impact families with special educational needs and disabilities
(SEND) due to the already higher prevalence of mental health conditions in children with SEND and their parents. Therefore, it is essential to determine the short-term impact of the pandemic on the mental health of families with SEND in order to identify their
ongoing health support needs. The current study aims to examine the anxiety level and concerns of children with SEND and their parents living in China. The sample consisted of 271 parents of children with SEND aged between 6 and 17 years (Mage = 8.37; SDage = 2.76). Parents completed an online survey between 10 April to 8 June 2020. Both child and parental anxiety levels and various concerns increased after the initial wave of COVID-19 when compared with retrospective pre-COVID-19 levels. Parental anxiety and concern levels were significantly higher for those living in rural areas compared to urban areas. In addition, parental and child anxiety and concern levels were significantly correlated with each other. Parental anxiety at the lowest level made a unique and
significant statistical contribution to children’s anxiety levels. The implications of the study findings are discussed.
(SEND) due to the already higher prevalence of mental health conditions in children with SEND and their parents. Therefore, it is essential to determine the short-term impact of the pandemic on the mental health of families with SEND in order to identify their
ongoing health support needs. The current study aims to examine the anxiety level and concerns of children with SEND and their parents living in China. The sample consisted of 271 parents of children with SEND aged between 6 and 17 years (Mage = 8.37; SDage = 2.76). Parents completed an online survey between 10 April to 8 June 2020. Both child and parental anxiety levels and various concerns increased after the initial wave of COVID-19 when compared with retrospective pre-COVID-19 levels. Parental anxiety and concern levels were significantly higher for those living in rural areas compared to urban areas. In addition, parental and child anxiety and concern levels were significantly correlated with each other. Parental anxiety at the lowest level made a unique and
significant statistical contribution to children’s anxiety levels. The implications of the study findings are discussed.
- Faculty
- Faculté des lettres et des sciences humaines
- Department
- Département de Pédagogie spécialisée
- Language
-
- English
- License
- CC BY
- Open access status
- gold
- Identifiers
-
- DOI 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.708465
- ISSN 1664-0640
- Persistent URL
- https://folia.unifr.ch/unifr/documents/324883
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