Parenting of mothers of children in early childhood during the COVID-19 pandemic: qualitative research.
Ricardo Barros Gurgel, Juliane Lima Pereira Da Silva, Estela Maria Leite Meirelles Monteiro and 3 others
PMID 37531482WHAT IT FOUND
Mothers in poverty described childcare during the pandemic as stressful and isolating, with daycare and health access reduced.
They valued play and praise but reported yelling, punishment and slaps. Family routines and support were central to young children's daily learning.
Key findings
01Mothers described both positive parenting, such as playing and praising, and negative practices, including punishment, threats and physical violence.
02Caregiver wear was common, with mothers describing feeling like a maid, needing more patience, and wanting to learn how to teach children.
03Daycare and school closures were reported to affect children's learning and social relationships and to increase family burden; reduced access to health services was also described.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only eight mothers were interviewed, so the themes cannot be generalised to other families or caregivers. Data were collected online, so non-verbal interaction was not observed. Fathers were not included, although father participation was discussed through mothers' reports. Participants were mothers from one neighbourhood social assistance institution in Brazil, all in poverty, during 2020. It is a qualitative study, so it reports experiences and themes, not outcomes or effects of an intervention.
Declared interests
No funding or conflicts of interest are reported in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that pandemic stress caused child abuse or that any parenting programme works. Eight mothers described mixed practices, and the study only reports their experiences.