The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children’s conduct problems and callous-unemotional traits

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically altered family life, but whether family exposures to and worries about the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted child conduct problems (CP) and callous-unemotional (CU) traits is unknown. Thus, we evaluated 303 parents (Mage = 38.04; SD = 5.21; 92.4% biological mothers) and children (Mage = 6.43; SD = 2.13; 51.8% female) during a four-month period early in the pandemic. We examined associations between parental exposures to COVID-19, parental worries about the pandemic, harsh and warm parenting practices, and child CP and CU traits. Although more parental worries were not directly related to parenting practices, more worry about COVID-19 was specifically related to higher levels of child CP, particularly parental worries about themselves or family members contracting the virus. Our findings add to a growing literature demonstrating the burden that the pandemic has placed on families and its implications for children’s mental health.Published versio

Development of the Parenting In a Pandemic Scale (PIPS)

Abstract Parenting is critical to creating and maintaining healthy child development. Importantly, there are multiple determinants of effective parenting, including the psychological resources of the parent, contextual sources of stress and support, and characteristics of the child. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in colossal disruptions to family life, and has fundamentally altered the landscape of parenting. In the face of escalating infection and mortality rates, rising unemployment, financial insecurity, school closures, and shelter-in-place orders, parents have had to create new environments in which their children can flourish while, in many cases, continuing to juggle ongoing work, health, and emotional stressors of their own. Several recent reviews have offered a variety of recommendations for parents to promote child well-being during the COVID-19 outbreak. However, no measures have been developed to assess how parents have adapted their parenting behaviors in response to the pandemic. To better understand the lasting impact of the pandemic on children’s socioemotional health and well-being, we urgently need to characterize the impact of the pandemic on parenting practices. Accordingly, the current study developed the 24-item Parenting In a Pandemic Scale (PIPS) to assess behaviors enacted by parents to mitigate infection risk, manage children’s social and emotional needs, structure children’s activities, help with schoolwork or education, and promote physical activity. The scale is available in English and Spanish and is freely accessible for research, educational, or scientific purposes. We anticipate the PIPS being employed in studies alongside other, validated measures of parenting practices, parenting stress, or parental burnout, as well as in relation to measures of child mental health and resilience in the face of the pandemic

The COVID-19 Pandemic, Mask-Wearing, and Emotion Recognition During Late-Childhood

Emotion recognition (ER) is fundamental to effective human social interactions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health agencies recommended the use of face masks that occlude parts of the face often used for ER. Additionally, social distancing, stress, and changes to daily routines altered the social landscape of children. The current study investigated ER in children (N=133, 49% female) using both masked and unmasked facial cues during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also leveraged a longitudinal subsample of participants (n=36) who had completed the same ER task with unmasked faces before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results showed that masking of faces was related to worse ER, with the impact of masking more pronounced for happy, sad, and fearful faces than for angry and neutral faces. The effect of masking was related to worse ER when families reported a greater degree of social distancing. Finally, in the longitudinal subsample, ER of sadness showed significant worsening over time before versus during the pandemic relative to other emotions. Together, findings show that both occluding face parts and the broader social context (i.e., global pandemic with widespread social impacts) impact emotion-relevant judgments in school-age children

The Promoting Empathy and Affiliation in Relationships (PEAR) Study

Children with callous-unemotional (CU) traits are at high lifetime risk of antisocial behavior. Low affiliation (i.e., deficient motivation for social bonding) and fearlessness (i.e., reduced sensitivity threat) have been proposed as risk mechanisms that contribute to the development of CU traits. Parenting practices (e.g., harshness and low warmth) also predict risk for CU traits across childhood. However, no work in early childhood has identified attentional or physiological markers of low affiliation and fearlessness nor examined associations with later CU traits. Moreover, no studies have tested whether parenting practices are underpinned by low affiliation or fearlessness shared by parents, which could shape parent-child interactions and exacerbate risk for CU traits. Addressing these questions will inform knowledge of how CU traits develop and help to isolate novel parent and child targets for future specialized treatments for CU traits. The Promoting Empathy and Affiliation in Relationships (PEAR) study aims to establish risk factors for CU traits in 3-6-year old children. The PEAR study will recruit 500 children and parents at ages 3-4 (time 1) and ages 5-6 (time 2). Measures will include parent-reported questionnaires, computer tasks, and observation, combined with eye-tracking and physiological assessments, to facilitate a multi-method investigation of low affiliation, fearlessness, and parenting practices as risk factors for CU traits. The PEAR study will also investigate the moderating roles of child gender and race/ethnicity, family and neighborhood instability or disadvantage, and parental psychopathology. Study aims will be addressed within a structural equation modeling framework, which will flexibly leverage the multi-modal, multi-level assessment strategy. Ethics and dissemination. Ethical approval was granted by Boston University (#6158E) and the University of Pennsylvania (#850638). We will disseminate results through conferences and open access publications. All study and task materials will be made freely available

Promoting Empathy and Affiliation in Relationships (PEAR) study: protocol for a longitudinal study investigating the development of early childhood callous-unemotional traits

Introduction Children with callous-unemotional (CU) traits are at high lifetime risk of antisocial behaviour. Low affiliation (ie, social bonding difficulties) and fearlessness (ie, low threat sensitivity) are proposed risk factors for CU traits. Parenting practices (eg, harshness and low warmth) also predict risk for CU traits. However, few studies in early childhood have identified attentional or physiological markers of low affiliation and fearlessness. Moreover, no studies have tested whether parenting practices are underpinned by low affiliation or fearlessness shared by parents, which could further shape parent–child interactions and exacerbate risk for CU traits. Addressing these questions will inform knowledge of how CU traits develop and isolate novel parent and child targets for future specialised treatments for CU traits.Methods and analysis The Promoting Empathy and Affiliation in Relationships (PEAR) study aims to establish risk factors for CU traits in children aged 3–6 years. The PEAR study will recruit 500 parent–child dyads from two metropolitan areas of the USA. Parents and children will complete questionnaires, computer tasks and observational assessments, alongside collection of eye-tracking and physiological data, when children are aged 3–4 (time 1) and 5–6 (time 2) years. The moderating roles of child sex, race and ethnicity, family and neighbourhood disadvantage, and parental psychopathology will also be assessed. Study aims will be addressed using structural equation modelling, which will allow for flexible characterisation of low affiliation, fearlessness and parenting practices as risk factors for CU traits across multiple domains.Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was granted by Boston University (#6158E) and the University of Pennsylvania (#850638). Results will be disseminated through conferences and open-access publications. All study and task materials will be made freely available on lab websites and through the Open Science Framework (OSF)