Are the kids really alright? Impact of COVID-19 on mental health in a majority Black American sample of schoolchildren

PSYCHIATRY RESEARCH

卷:304

Article

Bhogal, Amanpreet¹  Borg, Breanna¹  Jovanovic, Tanja^1,2,3  Marusak, Hilary A.^1,2,3 

[1] Wayne State Univ, Sch Med, Dept Psychiat & Behav Neurosci, 3901 Chrysler Serv Drive,Suite 2B, Detroit, MI 48202 USA

[2] Wayne State Univ, Merrill Palmer Skillman Inst Child & Family Dev, Detroit, MI USA

[3] Wayne State Univ, Sch Med, Translat Neurosci Program, Detroit, MI USA

关键词: COVID-19;    Child;    Mental health;    Fear;    Physical distancing;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114146

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Children from historically disadvantaged groups (racial minorities, lower socioeconomic status [SES]) may be particularly susceptible to mental health consequences during the COVID-19 pandemic. We examined the impact of the pandemic, including mental health symptoms and COVID-19-related fears and behaviors, in a sample of majority Black American (72%) children (n=64, ages 7-10, 24 female) from an urban area with high infection rates. Children completed a mental health screening form prior to the pandemic (October 2019) and at two time points during the pandemic (May, August 2020). We examined the impact of SES on mental health changes over time, COVID-19 fears and behaviors, and perceived impact of the pandemic. We also tested whether baseline mental health predicted the impact of COVID-19. Children's fears of illness increased over time, and these effects were independent of race and SES. However, lower SES children reported more fears about social distancing during the pandemic as compared to higher SES children. Lower SES children also reported more internalizing symptoms at baseline, which decreased in this group following stay-at-home orders. Results highlight the need to reduce the risk of persistent fear and mitigate the mental health consequences among vulnerable pediatric populations during and after the pandemic.

【 授权许可】

Free