Family Function and Anxiety Among Junior School Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Moderated Mediation Model

Overview

Journal Front Psychiatry

Specialty Psychiatry

Date 2023 Jul 10

PMID 37426107

Authors

Zhifang Guo

Juan Zhao

Jiani Peng

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of anxiety among adolescents is relatively high during an epidemic. Studies have reported that family function and perceived stress are important factors affecting adolescents' anxiety. However, only few studies have explored the factors influencing the relationship between family function and anxiety. Therefore, this study explored the mediating and moderating mechanisms underlying this relationship among junior school student during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: 745 junior school students completed family function, perceived stress, and anxiety questionnaires.

Results: (1) The junior school students that were left-behind tended to show lower family function ( = -4.21, < 0.001), greater perceived stress ( = 2.72, < 0.01), and higher anxiety ( = 4.24, < 0.001), (2) Family function in junior school students was negatively associated with anxiety ( = -0.35, < 0.001); perceived stress mediated the relationship between family function and anxiety ( < 0.001), and (3) Whether the student was left-behind (LB) moderated the link between family function and anxiety ( = -0.16, = -3.33, < 0.001) and between family function and perceived stress ( = -0.22, = -2.61, < 0.001).

Conclusion: These findings suggest a negative association between family function and anxiety. Knowledge of the mediating role of perceived stress and moderating role of being left-behind may help prevent and improve anxiety among junior school students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Citing Articles

The underlying mechanisms of family function on anxiety among nurses during the public health emergency.

Liu X, Dong W, Zhang J, Cui Y, Deng W, Du Z Sci Rep. 2025; 15(1):7047.

PMID: 40016260 PMC: 11868614. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-91435-9.

References

Olson D, Sprenkle D, Russell C . Circumplex model of marital and family system: I. Cohesion and adaptability dimensions, family types, and clinical applications. Fam Process. 1979; 18(1):3-28. DOI: 10.1111/j.1545-5300.1979.00003.x. View

Yang T, Huang H . [An epidemiological study on stress among urban residents in social transition period]. Zhonghua Liu Xing Bing Xue Za Zhi. 2003; 24(9):760-4. View

Taylor S, Burklund L, Eisenberger N, Lehman B, Hilmert C, Lieberman M . Neural bases of moderation of cortisol stress responses by psychosocial resources. J Pers Soc Psychol. 2008; 95(1):197-211. DOI: 10.1037/0022-3514.95.1.197. View

Wang Y, Liu W, Wang W, Lin S, Lin D, Wang H . Left-behind children's social adjustment and relationship with parental coping with children's negative emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic in China. Int J Psychol. 2021; 56(4):512-521. PMC: 8251002. DOI: 10.1002/ijop.12754. View

Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R . A global measure of perceived stress. J Health Soc Behav. 1983; 24(4):385-96. View

Chorpita B, Barlow D . The development of anxiety: the role of control in the early environment. Psychol Bull. 1998; 124(1):3-21. DOI: 10.1037/0033-2909.124.1.3. View

Cheng J, Sun Y . Depression and anxiety among left-behind children in China: a systematic review. Child Care Health Dev. 2014; 41(4):515-23. DOI: 10.1111/cch.12221. View

ZUNG W . A rating instrument for anxiety disorders. Psychosomatics. 1971; 12(6):371-9. DOI: 10.1016/S0033-3182(71)71479-0. View

Lane J, Therriault D, Dupuis A, Gosselin P, Smith J, Ziam S . The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Anxiety of Adolescents in Québec. Child Youth Care Forum. 2021; 51(4):811-833. PMC: 8501325. DOI: 10.1007/s10566-021-09655-9. View

10.

Duan L, Shao X, Wang Y, Huang Y, Miao J, Yang X . An investigation of mental health status of children and adolescents in china during the outbreak of COVID-19. J Affect Disord. 2020; 275:112-118. PMC: 7329661. DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.06.029. View

11.

Jimenez T, Estevez E, Velilla C, Martin-Albo J, Martinez M . Family Communication and Verbal Child-to-Parent Violence among Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Perceived Stress. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019; 16(22). PMC: 6888577. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16224538. View

12.

Bai S, Repetti R . Short-Term Resilience Processes in the Family. Fam Relat. 2015; 64(1):108-119. PMC: 4523303. DOI: 10.1111/fare.12101. View

13.

Taylor S . Mechanisms linking early life stress to adult health outcomes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010; 107(19):8507-12. PMC: 2889360. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1003890107. View

14.

Radavelli-Bagatini S, Sim M, Blekkenhorst L, Bondonno N, Bondonno C, Woodman R . Associations of specific types of fruit and vegetables with perceived stress in adults: the AusDiab study. Eur J Nutr. 2022; 61(6):2929-2938. PMC: 9363314. DOI: 10.1007/s00394-022-02848-5. View

15.

Selcuk E, Caliskan Demir A, Gonenir Erbay L, Ozel Ozcan O, Gurer H, Donmez Y . Anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms in adolescents during the COVID-19 outbreak and associated factors. Int J Clin Pract. 2021; 75(11):e14880. PMC: 8646813. DOI: 10.1111/ijcp.14880. View

16.

Chen X, Qi H, Liu R, Feng Y, Li W, Xiang M . Depression, anxiety and associated factors among Chinese adolescents during the COVID-19 outbreak: a comparison of two cross-sectional studies. Transl Psychiatry. 2021; 11(1):148. PMC: 7921611. DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01271-4. View

17.

Briggs E, Fairbank J, Tunno A, Lee R, Corry N, Pflieger J . Military Life Stressors, Family Communication and Satisfaction: Associations with Children's Psychosocial Outcomes. J Child Adolesc Trauma. 2020; 13(1):75-87. PMC: 7163866. DOI: 10.1007/s40653-019-00259-z. View

18.

Morin A, Maiano C, Marsh H, Nagengast B, Janosz M . School life and adolescents' self-esteem trajectories. Child Dev. 2013; 84(6):1967-88. DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12089. View

19.

Shao R, He P, Ling B, Tan L, Xu L, Hou Y . Prevalence of depression and anxiety and correlations between depression, anxiety, family functioning, social support and coping styles among Chinese medical students. BMC Psychol. 2020; 8(1):38. PMC: 7178943. DOI: 10.1186/s40359-020-00402-8. View

20.

Panda P, Gupta J, Chowdhury S, Kumar R, Meena A, Madaan P . Psychological and Behavioral Impact of Lockdown and Quarantine Measures for COVID-19 Pandemic on Children, Adolescents and Caregivers: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Trop Pediatr. 2020; 67(1). PMC: 7798512. DOI: 10.1093/tropej/fmaa122. View