Associations of Household Structure and Presence of Children in the Household With Mental Distress During the Early Stages of the U.S. COVID-19 Pandemic

Emily J. Smail; Kira E. Riehm; Cindy B. Veldhuis; Renee M. Johnson; Calliope Holingue; Elizabeth A. Stuart; Luke G. Kalb; Johannes Thrul

doi:10.1037/fsh0000657

Associations of Household Structure and Presence of Children in the Household With Mental Distress During the Early Stages of the U.S. COVID-19 Pandemic

Emily J. Smail^*, Kira E. Riehm, Cindy B. Veldhuis, Renee M. Johnson, Calliope Holingue, Elizabeth A. Stuart, Luke G. Kalb, Johannes Thrul

^*Corresponding author for this work

Medical Social Sciences

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: The objectives of the current study were to (1) assess associations between household structure (i.e., living with spouse compared to living alone, with children, or with a spouse and children), presence of children, and mental distress in April 2020 and change in mental distress (between April and August 2020); and (2) determine whether these associations are moderated by income or sex. Participants: A total of 2,214 adults aged 25–55 from the April and August 2020 waves of the Understanding America study were included in the analytic sample. Study Method: Multivariable, survey-weighted linear regression models were used to examine associations between explanatory variables (i.e., household structure and number of children) and outcome variables (mental distress in April and change in mental distress), measured via the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)- 4. Results: In adjusted models, each additional child under the age of 12 was associated with lower mental distress in April 2020 (β = –.30, p =.002). Having children aged 13 to 18 and household structure were not significantly associated with mental distress. In interaction models, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress among individuals reporting low income (interaction b = –1.28, p =.016) but not high income. Similarly, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress in females (interaction β = -1.09, p =.025) but not males. Conclusion: This study supports prior literature that demonstrates the positive association of child rearing with psychological well-being and suggests that these benefits may be present even under stay-at-home orders in the early stages of the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	46-59
Number of pages	14
Journal	Families, Systems and Health
Volume	40
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1037/fsh0000657
State	Published - Dec 23 2021

Funding

The Understanding America Study is funded from several sources, including the Social Security Administration and the National Institute on Aging under grant 5U01AG054580. The survey that collected the mental health and COVID-19 related data used in this article was funded by the Center for Economic and Social Research at USC. Work on the current manuscript was in part supported by a RAPID Grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant number 2028683). Ms. Smail was supported by the National Institute on Aging Epidemiology and Biostatistics of Aging Training Program (T32AG000247). Kira E. Riehm was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health Mental Health Services and Systems Training Program (5T32MH109436-03) and by a Doctoral Foreign Study Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Cindy B. Veldhuis’ participation in this research was made possible through a National Institutes of Health/NIAAA Ruth Kirschstein Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (F32AA025816).

Keywords

Covid-19
Family structure
Mental distress
Parenting paradox

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Applied Psychology
Psychiatry and Mental health

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1037/fsh0000657

Cite this

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title = "Associations of Household Structure and Presence of Children in the Household With Mental Distress During the Early Stages of the U.S. COVID-19 Pandemic",

abstract = "Purpose: The objectives of the current study were to (1) assess associations between household structure (i.e., living with spouse compared to living alone, with children, or with a spouse and children), presence of children, and mental distress in April 2020 and change in mental distress (between April and August 2020); and (2) determine whether these associations are moderated by income or sex. Participants: A total of 2,214 adults aged 25–55 from the April and August 2020 waves of the Understanding America study were included in the analytic sample. Study Method: Multivariable, survey-weighted linear regression models were used to examine associations between explanatory variables (i.e., household structure and number of children) and outcome variables (mental distress in April and change in mental distress), measured via the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)- 4. Results: In adjusted models, each additional child under the age of 12 was associated with lower mental distress in April 2020 (β = –.30, p =.002). Having children aged 13 to 18 and household structure were not significantly associated with mental distress. In interaction models, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress among individuals reporting low income (interaction b = –1.28, p =.016) but not high income. Similarly, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress in females (interaction β = -1.09, p =.025) but not males. Conclusion: This study supports prior literature that demonstrates the positive association of child rearing with psychological well-being and suggests that these benefits may be present even under stay-at-home orders in the early stages of the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic.",

keywords = "Covid-19, Family structure, Mental distress, Parenting paradox",

author = "Smail, {Emily J.} and Riehm, {Kira E.} and Veldhuis, {Cindy B.} and Johnson, {Renee M.} and Calliope Holingue and Stuart, {Elizabeth A.} and Kalb, {Luke G.} and Johannes Thrul",

note = "Funding Information: The Understanding America Study is funded from several sources, including the Social Security Administration and the National Institute on Aging under grant 5U01AG054580. The survey that collected the mental health and COVID-19 related data used in this article was funded by the Center for Economic and Social Research at USC. Work on the current manuscript was in part supported by a RAPID Grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant number 2028683). Ms. Smail was supported by the National Institute on Aging Epidemiology and Biostatistics of Aging Training Program (T32AG000247). Kira E. Riehm was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health Mental Health Services and Systems Training Program (5T32MH109436-03) and by a Doctoral Foreign Study Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Cindy B. Veldhuis{\textquoteright} participation in this research was made possible through a National Institutes of Health/NIAAA Ruth Kirschstein Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (F32AA025816). Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 American Psychological Association",

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AU - Riehm, Kira E.

AU - Veldhuis, Cindy B.

AU - Johnson, Renee M.

AU - Holingue, Calliope

AU - Stuart, Elizabeth A.

AU - Kalb, Luke G.

AU - Thrul, Johannes

N1 - Funding Information: The Understanding America Study is funded from several sources, including the Social Security Administration and the National Institute on Aging under grant 5U01AG054580. The survey that collected the mental health and COVID-19 related data used in this article was funded by the Center for Economic and Social Research at USC. Work on the current manuscript was in part supported by a RAPID Grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant number 2028683). Ms. Smail was supported by the National Institute on Aging Epidemiology and Biostatistics of Aging Training Program (T32AG000247). Kira E. Riehm was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health Mental Health Services and Systems Training Program (5T32MH109436-03) and by a Doctoral Foreign Study Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Cindy B. Veldhuis’ participation in this research was made possible through a National Institutes of Health/NIAAA Ruth Kirschstein Postdoctoral Research Fellowship (F32AA025816). Publisher Copyright: © 2021 American Psychological Association

PY - 2021/12/23

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N2 - Purpose: The objectives of the current study were to (1) assess associations between household structure (i.e., living with spouse compared to living alone, with children, or with a spouse and children), presence of children, and mental distress in April 2020 and change in mental distress (between April and August 2020); and (2) determine whether these associations are moderated by income or sex. Participants: A total of 2,214 adults aged 25–55 from the April and August 2020 waves of the Understanding America study were included in the analytic sample. Study Method: Multivariable, survey-weighted linear regression models were used to examine associations between explanatory variables (i.e., household structure and number of children) and outcome variables (mental distress in April and change in mental distress), measured via the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)- 4. Results: In adjusted models, each additional child under the age of 12 was associated with lower mental distress in April 2020 (β = –.30, p =.002). Having children aged 13 to 18 and household structure were not significantly associated with mental distress. In interaction models, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress among individuals reporting low income (interaction b = –1.28, p =.016) but not high income. Similarly, living with children only was associated with decreased mental distress in females (interaction β = -1.09, p =.025) but not males. Conclusion: This study supports prior literature that demonstrates the positive association of child rearing with psychological well-being and suggests that these benefits may be present even under stay-at-home orders in the early stages of the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic.

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Associations of Household Structure and Presence of Children in the Household With Mental Distress During the Early Stages of the U.S. COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

UN SDGs

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