Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Apr 25;27(Suppl 1):S47-S52.
doi: 10.1093/pch/pxab109. eCollection 2022 Jun.

A cohort study examining the association between children's symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity, internalizing symptoms, and mindful parenting during the COVID-19 pandemic

Hannah O'Reilly  1 , Maria Rogers  1   2   3 , Julia Ogg  4 , Tessa Ritchie  2 , Jessica Whitley  1 , Alecia Santuzzi  4 , Elizabeth C Shelleby  4
Affiliations

A cohort study examining the association between children's symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity, internalizing symptoms, and mindful parenting during the COVID-19 pandemic

Hannah O'Reilly et al. Paediatr Child Health. .

Abstract

Objectives: Increased mental health difficulties have been reported in Canadian children as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and emerging research suggests that children with high levels of symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity have been disproportionately impacted. Accordingly, the pandemic has impacted families as well. The purpose of this study was the following: (1) to examine whether children's symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity at the beginning of the 2020 and 2021 academic year were associated with mindful parenting at the end of the academic year and (2) to examine whether children's depressive and anxiety symptoms at the end of the year moderated this relationship.

Methods: Parents of 114 young children in a large Canadian city participated in this study in the Winter of 2020 and the Spring of 2021. Parents completed several self-report scales used to measure children's mental health symptomatology and mindfulness in parenting.

Results: Children's symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity were significantly, negatively associated with mindful parenting across the pandemic year, and children's depressive symptoms moderated this relationship. Specifically, when children's depressive symptoms were low or average it was found that higher symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity were associated with lower levels of mindful parenting. However, when children's depressive symptoms were high their symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity were not predictive of mindful parenting.

Conclusions: Children's mental health, namely symptoms of inattention/hyperactivity and depression, are related to challenges in mindful parenting during COVID-19. These results may inform practitioners about which families require additional support during the pandemic.

Keywords: Anxiety; Attention-deficit disorder with hyperactivity; Coronavirus; Depression; Parenting.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Simple slopes of the regression of mindful parenting on children’s symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity at three levels of children’s depression symptoms. When children’s depressive symptoms were low or average it was found that higher symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity were associated with lower levels of mindful parenting. However, when children’s depressive symptoms were high their symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity symptoms were not predictive of mindful parenting.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

    1. Liu CH, Doan SN.. Psychosocial stress contagion in children and families during the COVID-19 pandemic. Clin Pediatr 2020;59(9–10):853–5. - PubMed
    1. Singh S, Roy D, Sinha K, Parveen S, Sharma G, Joshi G.. Impact of COVID-19 and lockdown on mental health of children and adolescents: A narrative review with recommendations. Psychiatry Res 2020;293:113429. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Statistics Canada. School Closures and COVID-19: Impacts on Children [Data Visualization Tool]. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/71-607-x/2021009/sc-fe-eng.htm (Accessed July 23, 2021).
    1. Kids are in Crisis – Canada’s Top Advocates and Experts Unite to Declare #codePINK [Internet]. Children First Canada; c2021https://childrenfirstcanada.org/code-pink/kids-are-in-crisis-canadas-top... (Accessed July 23, 2021).
    1. Cost KT, Crosbie J, Anagnostou E, et al. . Mostly worse, occasionally better: Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of Canadian children and adolescents. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2021:1–14. - PMC - PubMed