Parenting stress and risk of child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: A family stress theoryinformed perspective
Date
2020
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Publisher
Developmental Child Welfare
Abstract
The risk of child maltreatment is heightened during the pandemic due to multiple COVID-19 related
stressors, such as physical and mental health concerns, economic stress, challenges in homeschooling, marital conflicts and intimate personal violence, and intensified child–parent relationships.
Both parental internal (e.g., parenting styles) and external resources (e.g., social support), and parental perceptions toward stressors will affect how parents cope with these stressors, which may
exacerbate or mitigate the risk of child maltreatment. Guided by family stress theory, this article
identifies COVID-19 related stressors at the family level, and further elaborates on how these
stressors are associated with child maltreatment via parents’ resources, perceptions, and coping
strategies. Implications for future practice and research are discussed.
Description
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Keywords
family stress theory, child maltreatment risk, parental resources, COVID-19, coping
Citation
Wu, Q., & Xu, Y. (2020). Parenting stress and risk of child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: A family stress theory-informed perspective. Developmental Child Welfare, 2516103220967937.