1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«The first aim of the present study was to examine if parent and child fears about COVID-19 were related to each other. [The authors] also explored which concerns about COVID-19 were related to fears of COVID-19, among both parents and children. The second aim was to identify family changes (concerning family sleep habits, access to health services, income, employment, child custody arrangements) linked to greater fears and concerns about COVID-19 in both parents and children. Third, [the authors] investigated if parent and child fears and concerns about COVID-19 varied according to child sex, family income before the COVID-19 lockdown, and parent educational level.» (p. 2)

Questions/Hypothèses :
The authors «expected that changes in sleeping quality and habits would be related to higher levels of parent and child fears and concerns about COVID-19. [They] also expected higher levels of parent and child fears and concerns about COVID-19 to be associated with reduced access to health services, lower income, changes in parental employment, changes in child custody arrangements and more health issues. [The authors] also expected more fears and concerns about COVID-19 in girls than boys. Finally, [they] expected higher levels of child and parent fears and concerns about COVID-19 in low-income families and families in which parents have less education.» (p. 2)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
Participants of this study were «144 families during the pandemic: one parent and one or more children aged 9 to 12. […] Families were recruited in Quebec, Canada, during COVID-19 lockdown in the early stages of the pandemic (between April and May 2020).» (p. 2) «Participants were recruited through invitations posted on social networks or sent by email by school administrations.» (p. 4)

Instruments :
Questionnaire

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

The study’s «results showed that parent fear about COVID-19 (self-reported) was significantly related to child fear about COVID-19 (self-reported). The more fears parents have about COVID-19, the more fears of COVID-19 their child also has. This result can be explained in different ways. In fact, anxiety, fears and concerns can be transmitted from parent to child, either through genetic mechanisms or through the environment. Environmental factors that may explain intergenerational transmission of anxiety, fears and concerns include parenting, parent-child relationships, parental stress, or the child’s characteristics (e.g., temperament or cognitive abilities).» (p. 7-8) The «findings also revealed that fear specific to COVID-19 was linked to several non-specific (contextual) concerns about COVID-19 among parents (self-reported), and to a lesser extent, among children (parent-reported). These results show that parents are not only afraid of catching the disease, but are also anxious about many aspects of the life context associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and its social and economic effects.» (p. 8)