When the World Pivots: Changes in Infant Negative Affect Trajectories Following the Onset of the COVID‐19 Pandemic

TL;DR

This study found that infant negative emotions decreased during the pandemic, contrary to expectations, and were linked to factors like maternal anxiety and neighborhood disadvantage.

Contribution

The study provides longitudinal data on infant emotional development before and after the pandemic onset, overcoming prior methodological limitations.

Findings

Infant negative affect decreased after the pandemic began, contrary to pre-pandemic trends.

Higher contextual risk factors were associated with higher infant negative affect, regardless of the pandemic.

The study highlights the importance of contextual factors in shaping infant emotional development during crises.

Abstract

Research on the COVID‐19 pandemic's effect on infant emotional development has produced mixed results, often limited by methodological constraints, such as not having access to data prior to and after pandemic onset. This study helps overcome these limitations by analyzing data from 330 infants (51% female; 54% White, non‐Hispanic) across five points in the first 2 years of life, from October 2016 to August 2021. Multilevel growth models indicated that negative affect decreased following pandemic onset, contrary to the expected and observed increase in negative affect prior to the pandemic. Higher levels of contextual risk (maternal trait anxiety, neighborhood disadvantage) were associated with higher levels of infant negative affect, irrespective of the pandemic. These findings further our understanding of the pandemic's impact on child development.

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