Associations of household structure and presence of children in the household with mental distress during the early stages of the US COVID-19 pandemic.

Associations of household structure and presence of children in the household with mental distress during the early stages of the US COVID-19 pandemic.

Emily J. Smail, Kira E. Riehm, Cindy B. Veldhuis, Renee M. Johnson, Calliope Holingue, Elizabeth A. Stuart, Luke G. Kalb and Johannes Thrul

Journal paper

Families, Systems, & Health

2021

Purpose: The objectives of the current study were to (1) assess associations between household structure (i.e., living with spouse compared to living alone, with children, or with a spouse and children), presence of children, and mental distress in April 2020 and change in mental distress (between April and August 2020); and (2) determine whether these associations are moderated by income or sex. Participants: A total of 2,214 adults aged 25–55 from the April and August 2020 waves of the Understanding America study were included in the analytic sample. Study Method: Multivariable, survey-weighted linear regression models were used to examine associations between explanatory variables (i.e., household structure and number of children) and outcome variables (mental distress in April and change in mental distress), measured via the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)-4. Results: In adjusted models, each additional child under the age of 12 was associated with lower mental distress in April 2020 (β = –.30, p = .002). Having children aged 13 to 18 and household structure were not significantly associated with mental distress. In interaction models, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress among individuals reporting low income (interaction β = –1.28, p = .016) but not high income. Similarly, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress in females (interaction β = −1.09, p = .025) but not males. Conclusion: This study supports prior literature that demonstrates the positive association of child rearing with psychological well-being and suggests that these benefits may be present even under stay-at-home orders in the early stages of the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)