Parent-Child Relationships and the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Exploratory Qualitative Study with Parents in Early, Middle, and Late Adulthood

J Mitchell Vaterlaus; Tasha Shaffer; Emily V Patten; Lori A Spruance

doi:10.1007/s10804-021-09381-5

Parent-Child Relationships and the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Exploratory Qualitative Study with Parents in Early, Middle, and Late Adulthood

J Adult Dev. 2021;28(3):251-263. doi: 10.1007/s10804-021-09381-5. Epub 2021 May 20.

Authors

J Mitchell Vaterlaus¹, Tasha Shaffer¹, Emily V Patten², Lori A Spruance³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health and Human Development, College of Education, Health, and Human Development, Montana State University, PO Box 173540, Bozeman, MT 59717 US.
² Nutrition, Dietetics, & Food Science Department, College of Life Science, Brigham Young University, S-231 ESC, Provo, UT 84602 US.
³ Public Health Department, College of Life Science, Brigham Young University, LSB 2149, Provo, UT 84602 US.

Abstract

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on families is currently unknown. Parents and children have experienced a variety of changes as public health interventions have been implemented to slow the spread of the virus. The current exploratory qualitative study recruited parents (n = 365) in early (ages 20-34), middle (ages 35-64), and late (ages 65 and older) adulthood to understand how the early weeks of the pandemic influenced their parent-child relationships. Participants completed an online survey between March 21 and 31, 2020. Three themes emerged through qualitative content analysis: (1) relational steadiness, (2) navigating COVID-19 challenges in relationships, and (3) relational enhancement.

Keywords: COVID-19; Pandemic; Parenting; Parent–child relationships; Qualitative.