Parent and child mental health trajectories April 2020 to May 2021: Strict lockdown versus no lockdown in Australia. (November 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Westrupp, Elizabeth M; Greenwood, Christopher J; Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, Matthew; Olsson, Craig A; Sciberras, Emma; Mikocka-Walus, Antonina; Melvin, Glenn A; Evans, Subhadra; Stokes, Mark A; Wood, Amanda G; Karantzas, Gery C; Macdonald, Jacqui A; Toumbourou, John W; Teague, Samantha J; Fernando, Julian W; Berkowitz, Tomer S; Ling, Mathew; Youssef, George J
• Is Part Of: Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry. Volume 56:Number 11(2022)
• Page Start: 1491
• Page End: 1502
• Publication Date: 2022-11
• Subjects: COVID-19 pandemic -- mental health -- parenting -- child mental health -- couple conflict; Psychiatry -- Periodicals; Psychiatry -- Australia -- Periodicals; Psychiatry -- New Zealand -- Periodicals; 616.89005
• DOI: 10.1177/00048674211065365
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0004-8674

Abstract

Objective: To control a second-wave COVID-19 outbreak, the state of Victoria in Australia experienced one of the world's first long and strict lockdowns over July–October 2020, while the rest of Australia experienced 'COVID-normal' with minimal restrictions. We (1) investigate trajectories of parent/child mental health outcomes in Victoria vs non-Victoria and (2) identify baseline demographic, individual and COVID-19-related factors associated with mental health trajectories. Methods: Online community sample of 2004 Australian parents with rapid repeated assessment over 14 time-points over April 2020 to May 2021. Measures assessed parent mental health (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales-21), child depression symptoms (13-item Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire) and child anxiety symptoms (four items from Brief Spence Children's Anxiety Scale). Results: Mental health trajectories shadowed COVID-19 infection rates. Victorians reported a peak in mental health symptoms at the time of the second-wave lockdown compared to other states. Key baseline predictors, including parent and child loneliness (standardized regression coefficient [β] = 0.09–0.46), parent/child diagnoses (β = 0.07–0.21), couple conflict (β = 0.07–0.18) and COVID-19 stressors, such as worry/concern about COVID-19, illness and loss of job (β = 0.12–0.15), predicted elevated trajectories. Effects of predictors on parent and child mental health trajectories are illustrated in an online interactive app for readers (https://lingtax.shinyapps.io/CPAS_trend/ ). Conclusion: Our findings provide evidence of worse trajectories of parent and child mental health symptoms at a time coinciding with a second COVID-19 outbreak involving strict lockdown in Victoria, compared to non-locked states in Australia. We identified several baseline factors that may be useful in detecting high-risk families who are likely to require additional support early on in future lockdowns.