scholarly journals ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION OF UKRAINIAN SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN IN THE PROCESS OF DISTANCE EDUCATION DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Author(s):  
Svitlana Hozak ◽  
Olena Yelizarova ◽  
Tetiana Stankevych ◽  
Natalia Diuba ◽  
Alla Parats ◽  
...  

The introduction of distance education (DE) challenged all participants in the educational process and it was impacting the well-being of children. The purpose of the study was investigating the impact of different forms of DE on values of anxiety and depression (A&D) in school-age children. Methods. An online survey of 760 respondents was conducted with use RCADS. All respondents signed informed consent. ANOVA was used for statistical analysis (STATISTICA 8.0). The models were adjusted for age and gender of respondents. Results. More than 20% of parents have reported their own and their children's high psychological stress during DE. The adaptation was easier and faster for respondents who were able to organize a virtual communication and got support from teachers. Pathological increase of the level A&D has been detected in 14.4±1.3% of respondents. There were 2.8 times more girls with clinical A&D than boys (p<0.001). The DE formats of "All-Ukrainian online school" and individual learning did not significantly affect the level of A&D in school-age children (p>0.5). DE in the form of tasks in messengers and social networks significantly increased the level A&D (p<0.001), and DE offline increased only the level of Anxiety (p<0.05). Reductions the level A&D have been identified in online lessons with the teacher and the schoolfellows (p<0.001). The chances of increasing the level of anxiety and depression in school-age children grow in 1.8 times when using non-interactive forms of education (OR=1.78; CI 1.17-2.69; p<0.01). Conclusions. Teacher support and online lessons help reduce psychological discomfort during distance education. The surveillance the mental health of children is required during the implementation of various forms of DE.

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. e043397
Author(s):  
Austen El-Osta ◽  
Aos Alaa ◽  
Iman Webber ◽  
Eva Riboli Sasco ◽  
Emmanouil Bagkeris ◽  
...  

ObjectiveInvestigate the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on feelings of loneliness and social isolation in parents of school-age children.DesignCross-sectional online survey of parents of primary and secondary school-age children.SettingCommunity setting.Participants1214 parents of school-age children in the UK.MethodsAn online survey explored the impact of lockdown on the mental health of parents with school-age children, and in particular about feelings of social isolation and loneliness. Associations between the UCLA Three-Item Loneliness Scale (UCLATILS), the Direct Measure of Loneliness (DMOL) and the characteristics of the study participants were assessed using ordinal logistic regression models.Main outcome measuresSelf-reported measures of social isolation and loneliness using UCLATILS and DMOL.ResultsHalf of respondents felt they lacked companionship, 45% had feelings of being left out, 58% felt isolated and 46% felt lonely during the first 100 days of lockdown. The factors that were associated with higher levels of loneliness on UCLATILS were female gender, parenting a child with special needs, lack of a dedicated space for distance learning, disruption of sleep patterns and low levels of physical activity during the lockdown. Factors associated with a higher DMOL were female gender, single parenting, parenting a child with special needs, unemployment, low physical activity, lack of a dedicated study space and disruption of sleep patterns during the lockdown.ConclusionsThe COVID-19 lockdown has increased feelings of social isolation and loneliness among parents of school-age children. The sustained adoption of two modifiable health-seeking lifestyle behaviours (increased levels of physical activity and the maintenance of good sleep hygiene practices) wmay help reduce feelings of social isolation and loneliness during lockdown.


Author(s):  
Anastasia Styugina ◽  

In the practice of a teacher-psychologist at the School of Distance Education, the game “Sign me up as an astronaut”, developed by the author, was tested, aimed at developing the skills of social and psychological interaction in younger adolescents with disabilities through the awareness and strengthening of personal resources by means of game psychocorrection. The specifics of the work of a psychologist at the School of Distance Education are determined by the following circumstances: - students have a severe disability and the corresponding psychophysical characteristics: instability of the emotional-volitional sphere, lack of motivation, severe physical and mental fatigue, low level of social skills, etc. - the use of distance educational technologies in psychocorrectional work; - lack of methodological recommendations for psychocorrectional work in conditions of distance technologies with school-age children. Such recommendations are available mainly for adults, they relate to the educational process, but they do not cover the correctional process. There is enough scientific and methodological literature on psychological and pedagogical correction, which is the basis for ensuring the work of a practicing psychologist, but there are difficulties in transferring these techniques, games, etc. - to the remote mode of correctional and developmental work, especially in the form of group work. During the game, various social and psychological situations are solved, which are selected strictly according to the characteristics of the social experience of the participants.


Author(s):  
Rasa Braslauskienė ◽  
Remigijus Bubnys ◽  
Reda Jacynė ◽  
Neringa Strazdienė ◽  
Sada Ramanauskienė ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 451
Author(s):  
Dimitra I. Siachpazidou ◽  
Ourania S. Kotsiou ◽  
Grigorios Chatziparasidis ◽  
Dimitrios Papagiannis ◽  
George D. Vavougios ◽  
...  

The fast-spreading coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic forced countries to apply restrictive measures to counteract it. School closure was quickly adopted by health authorities. We aimed to investigate the compliance of children aged 4 to 12 years with the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions and evaluate the impact of school closure on the children’s educational, social, economic, and psychological outcomes. An online survey was distributed through a social networking platform to parents of pre-primary and primary school-age children. The study period was defined as from 27 November 2020 to 3 December 2020, two weeks after the school closure due to the general lockdown in Greece. This study showed that the school units were well-informed and complied with the protection measures against COVID-19. The pupils quickly adopted the protection measures, even those whose parents suggested masks were less effective. The quarantine-forced school closure highly impacted primary school children’s physical activity, quality of sleep, psychological status, eating habits, academic performance, and household income. Web use showed an increase, with the children over-spending extracurricular time in web activities. Our study highlights the need for long term monitoring of these aforementioned indices, and the development of COVID-19 mitigation measures that carefully incorporate effectiveness and societal impact.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yujia Kong ◽  
Lance Garrett Shaver ◽  
Fuyan Shi ◽  
Lixia Yang ◽  
Weiguo Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background : The impact of COVID-19 on the emotions and behaviors of overseas Chinese immigrants and their families living in Canada has been poorly studied. The purpose of this study was to describe the knowledge, protective behaviors, and psychological impact of COVID-19 on Chinese immigrants and determine whether having school-age children was associated with adverse psychological outcomes. Methods: Using an online survey of 757 Chinese immigrants in Canada from April 2020, data regarding the perceptions of COVID-19, psychological impact, protective behaviors, and sociodemographic characteristics were collected and analyzed. A total of 747 eligible respondents were finally included in the analysis. Most of the participants (65.8%) were female and 77.2% had a university degree or higher. Results: There were no significant differences in knowledge of COVID-19 in participants with or without children aged 16 years or under. Participants with children aged 16 years or under were more likely to perceive themselves as being at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 than those without (P=0.023). Participants with children aged 16 years and under were also more likely to feel depressed (P = 0.007) or stressed (P = 0.010). In addition, parents with children aged 16 years and under were more likely to adopt protective behaviors, for example, washing and sanitizing hands frequently or disinfecting work and living spaces. Conclusions: For the most part, Chinese immigrants with children aged 16 years and under were more prone to negative emotions, such as stress, anxiety, and fear. These findings may assist key stakeholders with the identification and implementation of policies and interventions to support the needs of parents with young children, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.


2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 0-0

Introduction: Healthcare workers face incomparable work and psychological demands that are amplified throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Aim: This study aimed to investigate the psychological impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on health care workers in Jordan. Method: A cross-sectional design was used. Data was collected using an online survey during the outbreak of COVID-19. Results: Overall, of the 312 healthcare workers, almost 38% and 36% presented with moderate to severe anxiety and depression consecutively. Nurses reported more severe symptoms than other healthcare workers. And both anxiety and depression were negatively correlated with well-being. Getting infected was not an immediate worry among healthcare workers; however, they were worried about carrying the virus to their families. Implications for Practice: Stakeholders must understand the impact of COVID-19 on healthcare workers and plan to provide them with the required psychological support and interventions at an early stage.


2006 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 79-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel T. Fouladi ◽  
Lynn Rew ◽  
Sharon D. Horner

Computer-assisted administration of surveys is gaining popularity among many researchers, but the equivalence of this method to more traditional approaches such as using paper and pencil has not been determined for many commonly used questionnaires, particularly among school-age children. This study examined systematic differences in the responses of 4th, 5th, and 6th graders to measures of stress, coping, and humor among three modes of assessment: paper-and-pencil questionnaires, computer-assisted self-interviewing (CASI), or a combination of paper-and-pencil and CASI. Participants were 1,245 ethnically diverse children enrolled in public schools in the central region of the United States. Psychometric and score distribution characteristics were examined using item analyses and analyses of mean and covariance structure as a function of mode of assessment. Differences in response patterns, primarily at the scale score level, were documented on some of the key measures. In general, CASI medians and means were higher and correlations among CASI measures tended to be lower than those obtained with paper-and-pencil and mixed mode assessment, and CASI variances were lower. This study suggests the importance of the continued examination of the impact of mode of questionnaire administration when assessing these and other domains of well-being in school-age children.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 2994
Author(s):  
Laura S. Briones-Avila ◽  
Mara A. Moranchel-Hernández ◽  
Daniela Moreno-Riolobos ◽  
Taísa S. Silva Pereira ◽  
Ana E. Ortega Regules ◽  
...  

Over the past decades, Mexico has become one of the main sweetener-consuming countries in the world. Large amounts of these sweeteners are in dairy products aimed at the children’s market in various presentations such as yogurt, flavored milk, flan, and cheeses. Although numerous studies have shown the impact of sweeteners in adults, the current evidence for children is insufficient and discordant to determine if these substances have any risk or benefit on their well-being. Therefore, this study aimed to describe the sweeteners present in 15 dairy products belonging to the school-age children’s market in Mexico and their impact on health. These dairy products were selected through a couple of surveys directed at parents of school-age children. After that, the list of ingredients of each product was analyzed to identify their sweetener content. From there, exhaustive bibliographic research on sweeteners and their possible health effects was carried out, which included 109 articles and 18 studies. The results showed that at a neurological, endocrinological, cardiovascular, metabolic, osseous, renal, hepatic, dental, reticular, carcinogenic, and gut microbiota level; sucrose, fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, maltodextrins, sucralose, and acesulfame K, have a negative effect. While maltodextrins, stevia, polydextrose, and modified starch have a positive one. For these reasons, it is necessary to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages that the consumption of each sweetener entails, as well as a determination of the appropriate acceptable daily intake (ADI).


Societies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 71
Author(s):  
Ourania Tzoraki ◽  
Svetlana Dimitrova ◽  
Marin Barzakov ◽  
Saad Yaseen ◽  
Vasilis Gavalas ◽  
...  

The ongoing ‘refugee crisis’ of the past years has led to the migration of refugee researchers (RRs) to European countries. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, RRs often had to work from home and/or to continue their social, cultural and economic integration process under new conditions. An online survey carried out to explore the impact of the pandemic on the refugee researchers showed that RRs found it difficult to adapt their everyday working life to the ‘home’ setting. The majority have had neither a suitable work environment at home nor the appropriate technology. Although they stated that they are rather pleased with the measures taken by the public authorities, they expressed concern about their vulnerability due to their precarious contracts and the bureaucratic asylum procedures, as the pandemic has had a negative impact on these major issues. The majority of RRs working in academia seem not to have been affected at all as far as their income is concerned, while the majority of those employed in other sectors became unemployed during the pandemic (58%). Recommendations are provided to the public authorities and policy makers to assist RRs to mitigate the consequences of the pandemic on their life.


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