Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced novel stressors into the lives of youth. Identifying factors that protect against the onset of psychopathology in the face of these stressors is critical. We examine a wide range of factors that may protect youth from developing psychopathology during the pandemic. We assessed pandemic-related stressors, internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, and potential protective factors by combining two longitudinal samples of children and adolescents (N = 224, 7-10 and 13-15 years) assessed prior to the pandemic, during the stay-at-home orders, and six months later. We evaluated how family behaviors during the stay-at-home orders were related to changes in psychopathology during the pandemic, identified factors that moderate the association of pandemic-related stressors with psychopathology, and determined whether associations varied by age. Internalizing and externalizing psychopathology increased substantially during the pandemic. Higher exposure to pandemic-related stressors was associated with increases in internalizing and externalizing symptoms early in the pandemic and six months later. Having a structured routine, less passive screen time, lower exposure to news media about the pandemic, and to a lesser extent more time in nature and getting adequate sleep were associated with reduced psychopathology. The association between pandemic-related stressors and psychopathology was reduced for youths with limited passive screen time and was absent for children, but not adolescents, with lower news media consumption related to the pandemic. We provide insight into simple, practical steps families can take to promote resilience against mental health problems in youth during the COVID-19 pandemic and protect against psychopathology following pandemic-related stressors.
Highlights
The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced unprecedented changes in the lives of children and adolescents
The present study identifies simple and practical behaviors that are associated with well-being among children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic
We identified several factors—including a structured daily routine, low passive screen time use, low news media consumption about the pandemic, and to a lesser extent spending more time spent in nature and getting the recommended amount of sleep— that are associated with better mental health outcomes in youth during the pandemic
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced unprecedented changes in the lives of children and adolescents. Schools traditionally provide resources that may buffer youth against the negative consequences of stressors—including supportive social interactions, physical exercise, consistent meals, and a structured routine—that were unavailable to many U.S youth for a prolonged period of time during the pandemic These disruptions and pandemic-related stressors are likely to increase risk for depression, anxiety, and behavior problems in youth. We evaluated whether these nine simple and inexpensive strategies are (a) associated with reduced psychopathology symptoms during the pandemic and (b) buffer against the negative mental health consequences of pandemic-related stressors in children and adolescents We examined these questions by combining two longitudinal samples of children and adolescents whose mental health was assessed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic in Seattle, Washington. We did hypothesize that adolescents would show a stronger association between pandemic-related stress and psychopathology given previous work that shows that adolescence is a period of particular vulnerability to mental health problems following stressful life events [6, 7, 48,49,50]
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