TY  - INPR
Y1  - 2020/11/17/
A1  - Tso, WWY
A1  - Wong, RS
A1  - Tung, KTS
A1  - Rao, N
A1  - Fu, KW
A1  - Yam, JCS
A1  - Chua, GT
A1  - Chen, EYH
A1  - Lee, TMC
A1  - Chan, SKW
A1  - Wong, WHS
A1  - Xiong, X
A1  - Chui, CS
A1  - Li, X
A1  - Wong, K
A1  - Leung, C
A1  - Tsang, SKM
A1  - Chan, GCF
A1  - Tam, PKH
A1  - Chan, KL
A1  - Kwan, MYW
A1  - Ho, MHK
A1  - Chow, CB
A1  - Wong, ICK
A1  - Lp, P
N2  - BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is having a profound impact on the health and development of children worldwide. There is limited evidence on the impact of COVID-19 and its related school closures and disease-containment measures on the psychosocial wellbeing of children; little research has been done on the characteristics of vulnerable groups and factors that promote resilience. METHODS: We conducted a large-scale cross-sectional population study of Hong Kong families with children aged 2-12 years. Parents completed an online survey on family demographics, child psychosocial wellbeing, functioning and lifestyle habits, parent-child interactions, and parental stress during school closures due to COVID-19. We used simple and multiple linear regression analyses to explore factors associated with child psychosocial problems and parental stress during the pandemic. RESULTS: The study included 29,202 individual families; of which 12,163 had children aged 2-5 years and 17,029 had children aged 6-12 years. The risk of child psychosocial problems was higher in children with special educational needs, and/or acute or chronic disease, mothers with mental illness, single-parent families, and low-income families. Delayed bedtime and/or inadequate sleep or exercise duration, extended use of electronic devices were associated with significantly higher parental stress and more psychosocial problems among pre-schoolers. CONCLUSIONS: This study identifies vulnerable groups of children and highlights the importance of strengthening family coherence, adequate sleep and exercise, and responsible use of electronic devices in promoting psychosocial wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
JF  - European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
AV  - public
ID  - discovery10116535
N1  - This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher?s terms and conditions.
KW  - COVID-19
KW  -  Child psychosocial problems
KW  -  Coronavirus
KW  -  Home confinement
KW  -  School closure
TI  - Vulnerability and resilience in children during the COVID-19 pandemic
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-020-01680-8
ER  -