Carey, B., Ogunmona, S., & Tran, S. T. (2024, April). Is the world better with no parents? Parenting styles influence on college students coping skills during COVID-19. [Poster presentation]. Society for Pediatric Psychology Annual Convention, New Orleans, LA, United States.

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, 85% of college students experienced increased stress and anxiety levels. Many students needed emotional support during this time, but the COVID-19 guidelines made that very challenging. Negative parenting interactions and COVID stress predicted worse outcomes in young children; however these combined effects have not been studied in emerging adults. This study aimed to see if parenting styles buffered the effect of COVID-19 exposure on emerging adults’ coping styles.

We assessed data from a larger study of 1033 undergraduate students that examined the potential effects that chronic illness has on college students’ adjustment, psychological, and academic outcomes. Participants completed the COVID-19 Exposure and Family Impact Scale, The About My Mother Questionnaire, and The Brief COPE. Overall, greater COVID exposure was related to higher problem-solving, emotional, and avoidance coping (r = .09-.16, all p < .01). Using PROCESS, parenting styles moderated the relationship between COVID exposure and emerging adults’ coping styles. Specifically, higher parenting structure was related to higher levels of problem-solving, emotion-focused, and avoidance coping at higher COVID exposure (B = .003-.005; all p = .0001). Higher parenting involvement was related to higher emotion-focused coping (B =.002; p = .002) with higher COVID exposure, and low controllingness was related to lower avoidance, but only at low levels of COVID exposure (B = .001; p = .005).

Parenting styles moderated the relationship between COVID-19 exposure and emerging adults’ coping styles. Parents with warm and nurturing styles had kids with improved emotional stability during an uncertain time. In contrast, those parents who are more controlling and less nurturing had kids with high avoidance coping skills and less emotional adaptability. Therefore, understanding the dynamics of parental styles and their influence on emerging adults’ behavior and coping mechanisms can assist in informing strategies to enhance resiliency and promote adaptive coping skills.

References

Greene, R., Hails, K. A., Hostutler, C. A., Petts, R. Riley, A. R. A., Simoni, M., & Snider, T. C. (2022). COVID-19 distress, negative parenting, and child behavioral problems: The moderating role of parent adverse childhood experiences. Child Abuse & Neglect, 130, 105450–105450. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2021.105450

Ocampo, A. C. G., Restubog, S. L. D., & Wang, L. (2020). Taking control amidst the chaos: Emotion regulation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 119, 103440. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2020.103440

Younghans, J. (2018). College Stress. Harvard Medical School. https://hms.harvard.edu/news/college-stress

<— Take me back to Conference Presentations