Publications by authors named "Adrienne Shum"

Article Synopsis
  • The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted parental mental health, particularly due to the challenges of balancing work and home-schooling, with increased levels of stress and depression noted among many parents during restrictions.
  • A study analyzing survey data from over 5,500 parents in the UK found that stress and depression were particularly high among those with primary-school-aged children or specific working situations, while anxiety levels remained fairly stable.
  • Despite the majority of parents reporting low mental health symptoms, a notable minority exhibited persistent high symptoms, largely influenced by factors such as age, single-parent status, pre-existing mental health issues, and having children with special educational needs.
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Background: A major concern throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been on young people's experiences with mental health. In this study we mapped children and adolescents' mental health trajectories over 13 months of the pandemic and examine whether family, peer, and individual-level factors were associated with trajectory membership.

Methods: This study focuses on a sub-sample from the Co-SPACE study of 3322 children and adolescents (aged 4-16 years) for whom parents completed a survey at Time 0 and at least one follow-up survey between March 2020 and May 2021.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruption to the lives of children and their families. Pre-school children may have been particularly vulnerable to the effects of the pandemic, with the closure of childcare facilities, playgrounds, playcentres and parent and toddler groups limiting their opportunities for social interaction at a crucial stage of development. Additionally, for parents working from home, caring for pre-school aged children who require high levels of support and care, was likely challenging.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused extensive disruption to the lives of children and young people. Understanding the psychological effects on children and young people, in the context of known risk factors is crucial to mitigate the effects of the pandemic. This study set out to explore how mental health symptoms in children and adolescents changed over a month of full lockdown in the United Kingdom in response to the pandemic.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly changed the lives of children and adolescents, forcing them into periods of prolonged social isolation and time away from school. Understanding the psychological consequences of the UK's lockdown for children and adolescents, the associated risk factors, and how trajectories may vary for children and adolescents in different circumstances is essential so that the most vulnerable children and adolescents can be identified, and appropriate support can be implemented.

Methods: Participants were a convenience sample of parents and carers (n = 2,988) in the UK with children and adolescents aged between 4 and 16 years who completed an online survey about their child's mental health.

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Loneliness is a common experience in adolescence and is related to a range of mental health problems. Such feelings may have been increased by social distancing measures introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to investigate the effect of loneliness, social contact, and parent relationships on adolescent mental health during lockdown in the UK.

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Objectives: The COVID-19 related lockdowns and distancing measures have presented families with unprecedented challenges. A UK-wide cohort study tracking changes in families' mental health since early lockdown (Co-SPACE) found a significant rise in primary school-aged children's behaviour problems and associated family-related stress. Three-quarters of parents in Co-SPACE also reported wanting extra support.

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Objectives: The mental health consequences of COVID-19 are predicted to have a disproportionate impact on certain groups. We aimed to develop a brief measure, the Pandemic Anxiety Scale, to capture the specific aspects of the pandemic that are provoking anxiety, and explore how these vary by health and demographic factors.

Design: Data were from a convenience sample of parents (N = 4,793) and adolescents (N = 698) recruited in the first 6 weeks of lockdown.

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