COVID-19 and Family Distancing Efforts: Contextual Demographic and Family Conflict Correlates
Year: 2022
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Since the COVID-19 outbreak, family members have spent more time together at home. This study introduces the concept of “family distancing”—the efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus to family members. We explore which demographic characteristics are associated with family distancing efforts and how the family distancing efforts are associated with family conflicts. Survey data were collected from adults ( N = 324, M = 37 years; SD = 10.5 years; 65.1% female) in Korea. We found that gender, education, marital status, physical health status, and number of family members who live together were significantly associated with family distancing efforts. In addition, lower compliance with the request for family distancing was significantly associated with a higher degree of negative emotions (i.e., anger), which in turn was associated with more family conflict. The findings highlight the potential importance of family distancing efforts to maintain health but also their potential to increase family conflict.
Source: Journal of Family Issues
Authors: Sesong Jeon, Daeyong Lee, Carl F. Weems
Institutions: Kyungpook National University, Iowa State University
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4214570907