More than one-third, or 36.2 percent, of parents or caregivers have reported greater stress caused by caregiving responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey released yesterday by the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families found.
The survey, conducted via online questionnaires from Jan. 6 to 27, asked parents or caregivers of children under the age of 18 whether they agreed with the statement: “Because of the pandemic, stress from taking care of my children has increased.”
According to the poll, 63.8 percent of respondents disagreed with the statement, while 36.2 percent agreed.
The survey showed that 50.2 percent of the respondents disagreed that “stress from work has increased due to the pandemic,” compared with 49.8 percent who agreed.
It found that 36.8 percent of respondents reported a drop in their incomes “due to the impact of the pandemic,” the fund said.
According to the survey, 11.6 percent of respondents said they had more conflicts with their partners “because of the pandemic,” while 10.5 percent reported having more conflicts with their children for the same reason.
In the survey, 69.5 percent of respondents agreed with the statement: “My life has been affected by the pandemic,” while 30.5 percent disagreed.
A majority of the respondents — 86.3 percent — were women, the fund said.
Of all the respondents, 42.3 percent were aged 30 to 39 and 45.4 percent were aged 40 to 49, it said.
The survey collected 685 valid responses, and has a confidence level of 95 percent and a margin of error of 2.94 percentage points, the fund said.
Studies conducted abroad have shown that the pandemic has not only affected the economy and caused stress within families, but also increased the risk of violence, fund chief executive officer Betty Ho (何素秋) told a news conference in Taipei.
Citing the fund’s experience in working with families, she said that emotional and marital problems are among the major factors resulting in children being mistreated by their parents.
Between January and June last year, 6,539 children or young people received protective services, the fund said, citing Ministry of Health and Welfare data.
That figure was about a 21 percent increase from the same period in 2019, when 5,389 children or young people received protective services, it said.
Public support for children and young people is especially needed at this moment, the fund said.
The fund said it hopes to raise NT$30 million (US$1.06 million) by the end of this year for its “Kids First” (用愛包圍) child protection program, which offers services such as parent education and counseling.
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