# Parenthood and Self-Reported Depression, Anxiety, and Life Satisfaction in the COVID-19 Pandemic in the UK: An Examination of Differences by Age of Children and Level of Social Support

## TL;DR

This study explores how having children of different ages and social support affected parents' mental health during the UK's COVID-19 pandemic.

## Contribution

The study uniquely examines how a child's age and social support interact to affect parental mental health during the pandemic.

## Key findings

- Parents with younger children (0 to 5 years) reported better psychological wellbeing than those with older children.
- Social support significantly reduced depression, anxiety, and stress in parents with dependent children.
- Findings support Pearlin’s Stress Process Model and suggest increasing social support can safeguard vulnerable parents.

## Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic had a marked detrimental effect on the mental health of the UK population. Parents with dependent children were deemed vulnerable but research on parental mental health in this period neglected to examine a child’s age together with the presence of social support. To inform potential mental health support strategies this study investigated whether the pandemic was associated with different levels of psychological wellbeing for parents with youngest children of varying ages, relative to socio-demographic factors and social support levels. From November 2020 to April 2021 n = 915 UK adults completed an online survey measuring self-reported symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress, satisfaction with life, social support and socio-demographic characteristics. Results provide some evidence of better psychological wellbeing for parents with younger children (aged 0 to 5 years) than older children. Overall, social support was a key factor in mitigating depression, anxiety, and stress scores for parents of dependent-aged children. Findings provide new evidence supporting Pearlin’s Stress Process Model, highlighting the importance of social support to parents under pandemic-related pressures. These findings indicate that one way of safeguarding parents vulnerable to poor mental health could be by increasing social support to parents via formal and informal support services within school communities.