The Relationship Between Maternal Anxiety Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic and Children's Anxiety Following School Reopening in the Post-pandemic Era: An Analytical Cross-sectional Study

Goodarzi, Hanieh; Hasanpour, Marzieh; Valizadeh, Fatemeh; Mohammadi, Rasool; Ghasemi, Seyedeh Fatemeh

doi:10.22087/ijac.2025.490951.1031

The Relationship Between Maternal Anxiety Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic and Children's Anxiety Following School Reopening in the Post-pandemic Era: An Analytical Cross-sectional Study

Document Type : Research

Authors

Hanieh Goodarzi ¹

Marzieh Hasanpour ²

Fatemeh Valizadeh ³

Rasool Mohammadi ⁴

Seyedeh Fatemeh Ghasemi ⁵

¹ Student Research Committee, School of Nursing and Midwifery, ‌Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

² Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing Education Department, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

³ Department of Pediatric Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

⁴ Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health and Nutrition, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

⁵ Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

10.22087/ijac.2025.490951.1031

Abstract

Although infection and mortality rates have decreased, COVID-19-related anxiety persists in families, especially among mothers, even during the post-pandemic period. Maternal mental health issues may jeopardize various aspects of children's development. This study aims to explore the correlation between maternal COVID-related anxiety and their children's anxiety following the reopening of primary schools in the post-pandemic era. This analytical cross-sectional study selected 305 pairs of mothers and children. Data collection instruments comprised demographic questionnaires and assessments of COVID-related anxiety and manifest anxiety. Statistical analyses encompassed independent t-tests, one-way analysis of variance, and multivariate regression. Results showed that Children's manifest anxiety was predicted by maternal anxiety related to COVID-19 (B = 0.907, P<0.001). Moreover, significant associations were observed between the mean difference in mothers' COVID anxiety scores and their educational attainment and occupation, as well as their children's education and age, residential area, and husbands' education and occupation (P<0.001). Conversely, no significant differences were detected in maternal COVID anxiety scores concerning maternal age, spouse's age, and child's gender. In conclusions given the study's findings, it is recommended that nurses and psychologists should provide educational interventions for mothers who need psychological support.

Keywords

Anxiety

Mother

Child

Reopening of Schools

Post-COVID

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