International Psychology and the COVID-19 Pandemic : A Global Perspective

Abstract. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all societies worldwide. The heightened levels of stress that accompanied the crisis were also expected to affect parenting in many families. Since it is known that high levels of stress in the parenting domain can lead to a condition that has severe consequences for health and well-being, we examined whether the prevalence of parental burnout in 26 countries (9,923 parents; 75% mothers; mean age 40) increased during COVID-19 compared to few years before the pandemic. In most (but not all) countries, analyses showed a significant increase in the prevalence of parental burnout during the pandemic. The results further revealed that next to governmental measures (e.g., number of days locked down, homeschooling) and factors at the individual and family level (e.g., gender, number of children), parents in less (vs. more) indulgent countries suffered more from parental burnout. The findings suggest that stricter norms regarding their parenting roles and duties in general and during the pandemic in particular might have increased their levels of parental burnout. The results of this unique international study by the International Investigation of Parental Burnout – which includes Western and non-Western countries across the globe – point to the importance of considering parental burnout as a syndrome helping to meet specific Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Of all the potentially modifiable influences affecting individuals’ healthy lives and well-being across the life course (i.e., SDG 3), positive parenting in the early years has the potential to become a common pathway – by fostering social and emotional skills – to promote a range of healthy outcomes in both children and adults. Acknowledging that parenting can be extremely demanding and exhausting for parents who are confronted with specific individual-, family-, and country-level characteristics may give rise to develop programs how to encourage parents to minimize exhaustion in their parenting role and how to adopt nonviolent ways of disciplining children (SDG 16.2). The various individual and cultural factors as well as COVID-19 factors that have been found related to prevalence rates of parental burnout give indications with factors need to be addressed to promote health and well-being of parents and children (SDG 3) and to diminish or prevent violence against children (SDG 16.2).

Abstract. Cultures across the globe have evolved time-tested rituals to honor those who die and offer solace and support to survivors with the goal of helping them to accept the reality of the death, cope with the feelings of loss, adjust to life without the deceased, and find ways to maintain a connection to the memory of the deceased. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted these rituals and brought significant changes to the way we mourn. Specifically, public health responses to COVID-19 such as social distancing or isolation, delays or cancellations of traditional religious and cultural rituals, and shifts from in-person to online ceremonies have disrupted rituals and thus made it more difficult to access support and complete the psychological tasks typically associated with bereavement. This paper conceptualizes the common bereavement tasks including emotion-focused coping, maintaining a connection to the deceased, disengagement and reframing death and loss, and problem-focused coping. It provides examples of how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered mourning rituals across several cultures and religions and contributed to prolonged grief disorder as defined by the ICD-11 that includes depressive symptoms and post-traumatic stress. Early evidence suggested that the suddenness of loss, the social isolation, and the lack of social support often associated with COVID-19-related death are salient risk factors for complicated grief. As a consequence, psychological assessments, grief counseling, and mental health support are needed by families of patients who died from COVID-19. These services must be essential components of any comprehensive public health response to the pandemic. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many families lost their loved ones suddenly and unexpectedly and due to safety measures were isolated from social interactions and all rituals for grieving which exist in every culture. These circumstances can put certain family members at risk of developing complicated grief, which is longer and more impactful on their life than the normal course of grief. Good health is the third SDG 3 put together by the United Nations for the next 10 years. Mental health is an essential part of well-being and good health. It is thus imperative to include mental health support and grief counseling for any family which lost a loved one during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Abstract. Given the potential adverse impact of COVID-19-associated discrimination (CAD) targeting Asian Americans, we investigated the relationship between online and in-person CAD and mental health outcomes in a sample of East and Southeast Asian American (ESEAA) high school students ( n = 114). The study findings revealed that students with experiences of CAD in online and offline settings reported higher levels of anxiety and depression symptoms above and beyond the traumatic events and lifetime discrimination they endured in life. These results support the need and urgency to attend to the unique challenges in the ESEAA students related to CAD and their mental health outcomes. We provided implications for practice when working with this population and discussed study limitations and recommendations for future research. This study suggests that ESEAA youths are subject to direct and vicarious CAD online and in-person, which jeopardizes their mental health with an increased risk of developing anxiety and depression symptoms. Awareness of and efforts made in addressing this impact help enhance the overall well-being of ESEAA youths, promote their access to mental health services, and foster social justice and inclusiveness in American high schools, thereby advocating for the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3 and SDG 16, good health and well-being, and peace, justice, and strong institutions, respectively.