Heterogeneity in the perceived impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on parents with low incomes

Abstract

Objective

The goal was to describe differences in sociodemographic characteristics, family well-being, and COVID-19 pandemic experiences according to whether parents with low incomes reported that the overall impact of the pandemic on their life was positive, negative, or null.

Background

Emerging evidence suggests a wide range of parents' experiences during the pandemic, including those that were positive, challenging developmentalists' expectations.

Method

The Tulsa School Experiences and Early Development (SEED) Study asked parents of second graders in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to report on their perceptions of and experiences during the pandemic in 2021. Parents had low incomes and were predominantly Hispanic or Black.

Results

Most parents reported the overall impact of the pandemic as negative, but 21% said it had a positive impact, and 16% said it had no impact. The biggest differences across parents by perceived impact were indicators of family dysfunction, on which the negative impact group scored highest, and worry during the pandemic, on which the positive and negative impact groups scored equally high.

Conclusion

There is substantial heterogeneity in how low-income parents viewed the pandemic. Perceptions were linked more strongly to indicators of family functioning than sociodemographic status.

Implications

In future crises, parents will benefit from resources that promote adaptive coping strategies and healthy family functioning.