Stress for parents and their adult children as lockdown brings them back together under one roof

Younger adults and older family members often had to live together again during lockdown causing stress levels to rise, according to a new study.

School and university closures, the move to remote working, furlough or the loss of employment have all meant that many adult children who had previously left the parental home have returned. Other individuals have moved to provide care and support for a family member or friend who has been ‘shielding’, and some vulnerable and/or older people have moved in with a younger relative or friend.

For many families this has been an unexpected change; placing pressure on them to move into close quarters, spending more time together than ever before while adjusting to a change in circumstances and financial resources.

A study team, led by Professor Maria Evandrou of the ESRC Centre for Population Change and the Centre for Research on Ageing at the University of Southampton, has been looking at the effects of these changes. Their findings provide strong evidence that people whose living arrangements have changed because of the Covid-19 pandemic are more likely to report increased stress and family conflict than those who haven’t moved.

The research uses recently available data from five large scale nationally representative surveys, including the second wave of the Understanding Society Covid-19 Study, to explore the impact of the unexpected changes in living arrangements on wellbeing and familial relationships, as measured by self-reported stress and interpersonal conflict.

Findings from the study show:
• The majority (95.5%) of people responding to the Understanding Society Covid-19 survey had not changed their living arrangements during the three months since 1 March 2020.
• Just over 2% had changed their address and a further 1.5% reported other people had moved in, whilst under 1% reported people moving out.
• Young people aged 16-29, however, accounted for over half (57%) of all respondents reporting that they had moved.
• Respondents in mid-life (45-59) and early later life (60-74) accounted for the majority of respondents reporting other people had moved in or out.
• The researchers used cohort study data to confirm this picture; nearly a quarter (24%) of the Millennium Cohort Study, currently aged 19, reported a change in the people they were living with as a result of Covid-19, compared to under one in ten of the 1958 cohort, now aged 62.
• From the cohort study data they also found that those whose household composition had changed were significantly more likely to report increased levels of stress versus those whose living arrangements hadn’t changed (47.3% vs 36.9%).

Major life changes, financial problems, children and family, and work are common external stressors. Conflicts, demands, fear, expectations, and time pressures are also linked to stress. Stress usually produces both psychological and physiological reactions; long-term exposure to stress can lead to serious health problems.

At first sight, the changes in living arrangements caused by the Covid-19 pandemic could be seen as positive, as returning young adults benefit from the resources of the parental home, and older parents receive support from younger household members. An unexpected move, however, can also cause stress. For example, young people could feel they have lost their independence, while older members of the household could struggle with having their grown-up children and even grandchildren living at home again. Within a household, members provide and receive emotional, instrumental and financial support. Stress and conflict, however, can flare up when people believe that resources and demands for support are not equal. This stress can then lead to longer term health risks.

Professor Evandrou comments: “Our findings have important implications for public health and wider policy. Prolonged periods of stress can lead to serious health problems. Policy makers need to be mindful that services may need to flex to take these new, albeit for many temporary, forms of living into account.”

She continues: “For example, Universal Credit has been a lifeline for many families during the pandemic, but claims may be delayed for those whose changes in circumstances are complicated by temporary moves, with extended waiting times adding to stress. Other services such as GP practices may also need to ‘flex’, recognising that one in ten younger people have changed address during the pandemic – and may move again over the coming months as circumstances change.”

While this analysis has focused on stress and interpersonal conflict, the research team is planning future research to better understand the complex situations at play, including changes in financial wellbeing and mental health. This study forms part of a wider collection of research on the socioeconomic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK by CPC.

Read the full report ‘Changing living arrangements, family dynamics and stress during lockdown: evidence from four birth cohorts in the UK’ (SocArXiv) and the CPC Policy Briefing 58 'Changing living arrangements and family conflict in lockdown'.

Posted 18/09/2020 07:52