Reflective functioning in children and their caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract BackgroundThe emergence of COVID-19 has brought global awareness to the impact of the pandemic on mental health. Public health measures such as school closures and lockdowns led to overburdening both in children and their caregivers and increased emotional and behavioral problems, especially in low-income families.More work exploring families’ reflective functioning (RF)- the capacity to understand our own and others’ mental states- might help us understand the processes associated with mental health concerns in children and adolescents living with economic hardship.ObjectivesIn a sample of economically vulnerable caregiver-child dyads, the current study explored the relationship between parental and child RF, and the perceived stress levels of the caregiver and child during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodThe study utilized Pearson’s correlation on four instruments: the Child Attachment Interview and Parent Development Interview to evaluate the level of parental and child RF; plus, the Stress in Children Questionnaire and and Perceived Stress Scale to assess the levels of stress of each member of the dyad.ResultsAs expected, the RF levels of the caregiver and child were positively correlated. However, no association was found between the RF of either child or caregiver and their levels of perceived stress.ConclusionsDespite limitations, the present findings may have important implications for interventions, specifically those designed to improve parenting RF, which positively affects children’s mental health. Therefore, our findings highlight the potential of providing interventions based on parental RF to this population.