Children's mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: a population-based cohort study in the United States

Gender differences in the associations between developmental disabilities and anxiety and depression symptoms among U.S. children: Insights from the 2021 National Health Interview Survey

BACKGROUND

Limited research has explored the associations between developmental disabilities and symptoms of anxiety and depression among U.S. children during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigates the associations between developmental disabilities and symptoms of anxiety and depression among U.S. children and examines whether these associations differ by gender.

METHODS

The analysis included 6092 children aged 5-17 from the 2021 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Key risk factors for anxiety and depression symptoms included attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual disability (ID), learning disability (LD), and developmental delay (DD). Weighted multivariable logistic regression (MLR) was conducted to evaluate associations with anxiety and depression symptoms.

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of anxiety was 14.8 % (12.8 % for males and 17.0 % for females), while depression prevalence was 5.1 % (4.2 % for males; and 6.0 % for females). Children with developmental disabilities had significantly higher prevalence rates of anxiety and depression compared to their peers without such conditions (p < 0.05). MLR analysis revealed that being female and having a history of ADHD, ASD, LD, and DD were associated with increased odds of both anxiety and depression (p < 0.05). ID was associated with increased odds of anxiety but not depression. COVID-19 was not significantly associated with either anxiety or depression. Furthermore, the associations of ASD, LD, ID, and DD with anxiety and depression varied by gender.

CONCLUSIONS

Developmental disabilities were significantly associated with symptoms of anxiety and depression among U.S. children in 2021, with notable gender differences. These findings highlight the importance of incorporating gender-sensitive approaches in designing effective prevention and intervention strategies.

Online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic: the wellbeing of Chinese migrant children-a case study in Shanghai

Introduction

This study uses Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model as its theoretical framework to consider the findings of an investigation of the emotional, social, and physical wellbeing of Chinese migrant children and lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic in urban areas. This study expands our perspective by combining the views of students, parents, and teachers to explore the emotional, social and physical wellbeing of migrant children in Shanghai who were participating in online learning during the COVID-19.

Methods

Observation and semi-structured interviews were carried out to collect data for this case study. Thirty-one migrant children, nine parents, 10 teachers and a school principal from a Shanghai junior high school participated in this research. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Results and Discussion

The findings indicated that although video-recorded lessons were high quality, it put pressure on migrant children due to the lessons containing only new material with no reviews and reduced opportunities for them to interact with their own teachers. In addition, the differences in study progress between the migrant children and the local children that showed up during the online learning, and neglect from teachers and policymakers, made the migrant children anxious, angry and confused about their future. Besides, parents install monitors at home to support their children's online learning, but it had the opposite effect and simply provoked increased conflicts between children and their parents. Finally, although the online lessons have affected the optical health of students, the subsequent additional cooking lessons have mitigated the optical health problem and strengthened the connections between home and school.

Conclusion

The inequalities of education encountered by migrant children during the COVID-19 period have made them realize the disparities they have suffered in Shanghai. The exposure of this problem raises the prospect of a reform of educational policies for migrant children in the future.