Mother's functional difficulty is affecting the child functioning: Findings from a nationally representative MICS 2019 cross-sectional survey in Bangladesh

Abstract

Background: Functional difficulties in children can be transmitted from mother to child, which is a major concern. We sought to determine whether there was a correlation between a mother's functional difficulty and functional difficulty in kids between the ages of 2-4 and 5-17. We also want to evaluate other fundamental aspects that influence on child's functionality.

Methods: We used Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) data sets. For two different age groups, the children's difficulty status was evaluated. The sociodemographic factors served as explanatory variables in this study. We used χ ² tests and survey logistic regression models to analyze the data.

Results: Functional difficulties were less common in children aged 2-4 years (2.78%) but 8.27% in those aged 5-17 years. The study specifies that the mother's functional difficulty (odds ratio [OR]: 2.66, confidence interval [CI]: 1.35-5.24 for children aged 2-4 years and OR: 3.36, CI: 2.80-4.03 for children aged 5-17 years) were significantly associated with the functional difficulty of both age groups' children. Not attending early childhood education programs (OR: 1.89, CI: 1.16-3.10 for children aged 2-4 years and OR: 2.66, CI: 2.19-3.22 for children aged 5-17 years) and divisions were also significantly affecting the functional difficulty of both age groups' children. Moreover, area of residence and gender were significant factors for the older age group.

Conclusions: The prevalence of difficulty among children in Bangladesh is high. Children's functional difficulty, regardless of age, is greatly influenced by the functional difficulty of their mothers, their absence from early childhood education programs, and divisions. Reducing the prevalence of child functioning difficulties will be more successful if the government and NGOs consider these factors while developing appropriate intervention programs.

Keywords: Bangladesh; Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS); child functional difficulty; early childhood education program; mother's functional difficulty.

Figure 1

Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for screening children with functional difficulties for both age groups