Coping in Isolation: Predictors of Individual and Household Risks and Resilience Against the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Highlights The present COVID-19 lockdown situation has the potential for various adverse effects on population mental health across multiple domains. The current lockdown is identified as an adverse childhood experience. Psycho-social competencies may play a protective, moderating, role in supporting the mental health of parents, and children Parental burnout is identified as an important risks factor Creativity is identified as a potential protective factor Abstract: The present short commentary aimed at highlighting the potential impact of lockdown specifically on parents and children’s mental health. Embedded within a systemic view, it identified protective factors that may account for individual and household resilience. In the first section of this manuscript, we present the core concepts of resilience, before we highlight the adverse risks of the current COVID-19 situation on parents’ and children's mental health. We provide evidence that parents and children alike might be concerned by increased risks of chronic diseases, abuse, and violence. Complementarily, we report the importance of psychological needs and competences and propose ways to promote these competencies among households. Overall, this paper emphasises that psychosocial competences such as creativity, emotion regulation, or interpersonal skills may constitute important characteristics to help parents and children alike coping and even thriving in the current worldwide adversity of the COVID-19 pandemic.