Search

Evidence suggests an impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, particularly among emerging adults. However, theories on altruism born of suffering or adversarial growth suggest that we might also see prosocial behavior as a function of the pandemic, which may protect against mental health challenges. Because cultural values are central in determining prosocial behavior, the current study explored how cultural values were differentially associated with adaptive prosocial behaviors that might protect against mental health challenges. Participants for the current study included 5,682 young people aged 18–25 years from 14 different countries around the world (68% female, 62% college students). Path analyses suggested that there were few differences in patterns as a function of culture, but revealed that horizontal individualism and horizontal and vertical collectivism were indirectly associated with lower levels of depression via prosocial behavior toward family members. Discussion focuses on the importance of coping by strengthening family relationships via prosocial behavior during the pandemic.

The COVID-19 crisis has had a major impact on youth. This study examined factors associated with youth's attitudes towards their government's response to the pandemic and their blaming of individuals from certain risk groups, ethnic backgrounds, and countries or regions. In a sample of 5,682 young adults (Mage = 22) from 14 countries, lower perceived burden due to COVID-19, more collectivistic and less individualistic values, and more empathy were associated with more positive attitudes towards the government and less blaming of individuals of certain groups. Youth's social identification with others in the pandemic mediated these associations in the same direction, apart from the COVID-19 burden on attitudes, which had a positive indirect effect. No evidence of country-level moderation was found.

Objectives: We tested an extended family stress model of economic hardship (FSM; Conger et al., 2010) incorporating structural risks (discrimination, immigration, and COVID-19 experiences) and qualitative data, to better understand the impact of culturally relevant experiences on family stress processes in rural, immigrant Latine families in the U.S. Midwest. Method: Participants were Latine families (N = 307) with a child aged 10–15 (Mage = 12.21 years, 51.0% boys; 71.5% two parent; 93.1% of caregivers and 29% of youth born outside the United States) Mean household income was 25–30K and 65% of caregivers had less than a high school education. We tested a cross-sectional structural equation model in Mplus and analyzed qualitative interviews with a subsample of mother–youth dyads (n = 19). Results: COVID-19 experiences predicted economic pressure, and both COVID-19 and discrimination experiences were linked to caregiver psychological distress. Consistent with the FSM, economic pressure predicted psychological distress, which was associated with interparental relationship problems and parenting. Parenting was associated with youth global health. Unexpectedly, interparental relationship problems to parenting were not significant. The indirect association linking COVID-19 experiences to youth global health via psychological distress and parenting was significant. Qualitative data revealed five themes demonstrating how structural and economic risks contributed to distress, conflict, and maladjustment within the family system. Conclusions: Culturally relevant structural risks exert a negative influence on family processes in rural Latine immigrant families through contributing to economic pressures and parental distress. The additional impact of these experiences should be considered when addressing the FSM in Latine populations. Public Significance Statement: Negative life experiences such as discrimination, immigration barriers, and the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to economic strain and caregiver distress in rural immigrant Latine families, which in turn, impact family relationships, parenting behaviors, and adolescent well-being. Improving the conditions that threaten the well-being of Latine immigrant caregivers will benefit their children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID‐19 pandemic had significant health and socioeconomic repercussions for Latine immigrant families and their children due to long‐standing social, economic, and immigration‐related inequities, with rural families particularly vulnerable. In particular, the mental health and well‐being of Latine youth may have been detrimentally impacted due to disproportionate family stressors and burdens. In the present study, we examined the effect of parent and youth COVID‐19 pandemic stress on youth mental health, and in turn, on youth well‐being using quantitative and qualitative data. Participants were Latine youth in rural and agricultural families in the US Midwest (N = 210, Mage = 12.10 years, 52.4% male, 36.2% first‐generation immigrants) and a primary caregiver (86.5% mothers, 92.7% first‐generation immigrant, mean income = 25‐30 K) as well as n = 19 dyadic qualitative interviews. Quantitative analyses revealed that both youth and primary caregiver COVID‐19 stressors were associated with youth mental health problems, and indirectly impacted five domains of youth well‐being (engagement, perseverance, optimism, connectedness, and happiness). Qualitative findings provided insights into how the COVID‐19 pandemic increased stress for mothers and children (e.g., job loss and economic hardship, COVID‐19 infection, online education challenges). The study demonstrates how the environmental context of the COVID‐19 pandemic shaped the individual and family‐level functioning of Latine immigrant families during this uniquely challenging time period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have mostly focused on the socialisation role of parents on adolescents' prosocial behaviours and there is relatively less work focusing on peers who are important socialisation agents for the development of prosocial behaviours in adolescence. Further, simultaneously examining the socialisation roles of multiple socialisation agents in prosocial behaviours and empathy development is even rarer. Thus, in the current study, we examined supportive and poor relationships with three socialisation agents (i.e., parents, peers in class, and peers in extracurricular activities) on adolescents' prosocial behaviours, considering whether empathy mediates these relations. Additionally, we examined the links between supportive and poor relationships with peers in the class and extracurricular activities and adolescents' prosocial behaviours, and the mediating role of empathy. The sample was 676 French adolescents (50% female, M age = 14.35 years). Supportive relationships and poor relationships models were tested separately. We examined the relative strengths of three socialisation agents using three-socialiser and two-socialiser models. In the three-socialiser model, supportive relationships with parents and peers in the extracurricular activities were positively linked to adolescents' empathy a year later, which, in turn, was positively linked to helping and caring behaviours. Additionally, poor relationships with parents were negatively linked to adolescents' empathy a year later, which, in turn, was positively linked to helping and caring behaviours. In the two-socialiser model, both supportive relationships with peers in class and extracurricular activities were positively linked to adolescents' empathy 1 year later, which, in turn, was positively linked to helping and caring behaviours but only for early adolescents. Lastly, in the two-socialiser model, poor relationships with peers in extracurricular activities were negatively linked to adolescents' empathy 1 year later, which, in turn, was positively linked to helping and caring behaviours. In general, these results were robust across adolescents' gender and age. Overall, results make several important contributions to the literature on the role of multiple socialisation agents and adolescents' prosocial behaviours. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the factor structure and the reliability of the Prosocial Behavior Scale (PBS). To our knowledge, no factorial validity of the multifactorial structure of PBS has been published to date. The psychometric characteristics of the PBS were examined in several samples of French adolescents (aged 11-19, N1 = 1141, N2 = 1071, and N3 = 1640) using Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA). The original four-factor structure was not confirmed due to lack of discriminant validity. CFA led us to retain a two-factor solution with a good fit and a satisfactory reliability. Furthermore, the results support the convergent validity of the PBS: helping and caring dimensions were positively correlated with empathy. In addition, partial measurement invariance across gender and grade was attested. In conclusion, the results indicate that the French version of the PBS is a useful instrument for the assessment of prosocial behaviors in adolescence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this rapid systematic review was to examine how the COVID‐19 pandemic impacted peer relationships for adolescents (10–25 years of age) around the globe. We focused on four indices of peer relationships: (1) loneliness, (2) social connectedness, (3) social support, and (4) social media use. In addition, we examined gender and age differences. Four databases (APA PsychInfo, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science) were searched for articles published from January 2020 to November 2022. A total of 96 studies (cross‐sectional: n = 66, longitudinal: n = 30, quantitative: n = 67, qualitative: n = 12, mixed‐methods: n = 17) met our inclusion criteria (empirical observational studies with data on at least one of the indices of interest, cross‐sectional data on COVID‐19‐related experiences or longitudinal data collected during the pandemic, age range of 10–25 years, typically developing adolescents). We extracted data and conducted a narrative synthesis. Findings suggest that COVID‐19 disruptions negatively impacted peer relationships for youth. Most studies reported either an increase in loneliness over the course of the pandemic or a positive association between loneliness and COVID‐19‐related experiences. Similar findings were observed for increased social media use as a means of continued communication and connection. Fewer studies focused on social support but those that did reported a decrease or negative association with COVID‐19‐related experiences. Lastly, findings suggest a mixed impact on social connectedness, which might be due to the strengthening of closer ties and weakening of more distant relationships. Results for gender differences were mixed, and a systematic comparison of differences across ages was not possible. The heterogeneity in measures of COVID‐19‐related experiences as well as timing of data collection prevented a more nuanced examination of short and more long‐term impacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]