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. 2022 Sep 2;19(17):10999.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph191710999.

Mental Health Status of French School-Aged Children's Parents during the COVID-19 Lockdown and Its Associated Factors

Stéphanie Bourion-Bédès  1   2 , Hélène Rousseau  3 , Martine Batt  4 , Pascale Tarquinio  5 , Romain Lebreuilly  4 , Christine Sorsana  4 , Karine Legrand  2   6 , Rabah Machane  1 , Cyril Tarquinio  2 , Cédric Baumann  2   3
Affiliations

Mental Health Status of French School-Aged Children's Parents during the COVID-19 Lockdown and Its Associated Factors

Stéphanie Bourion-Bédès et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to widespread social isolation. This study aimed to determine anxiety levels among parents of school-aged children and investigate the associated factors. Data on sociodemographic characteristics, living and working conditions, family relationships, social support (MSPSS) and health status (SF-12) were collected from French parents through an online survey. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) was used to assess anxiety. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the factors associated with moderate to severe anxiety. Among 698 parents, 19.2% experienced moderate to severe anxiety. A low level of resilience (OR = 4.3, 95% CI: 2.7-6.7) and confirmed COVID-19 cases involving hospitalization (OR = 3.8, 95% CI: 2.0-7.3) among individuals in one's household or in the family circle were found to be the main risk factors for moderate to severe anxiety. Other factors were also identified: a level of education less than high school (OR = 2.1, 95% CI: 1.3-3.2), conflicts at home (OR = 2.3, 95% CI: 1.4-3.7), noises outside the home (OR = 2.0, 95% CI: 1.0-3.9), confirmed cases not involving hospitalization (OR = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.0-3.1) and suspected cases (OR = 1.9, 95% CI: 1.0-3.8). Family support was a protective factor. These findings suggest some need for support programs to help parents cope with public health crises and work-family challenges.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; anxiety; family support; parents; resilience.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.

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