Early Childhood Education Department, Oranim Academic College of Education, Kiryat Tevo'n 3600600, Israel.
Edmond. J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 13;18(6):2946. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18062946.
Negative psychological effects of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been identified in adults and children, such as anxiety and sleep disorders. However, research about the impact of this pandemic on children from ethnical minorities is scarce. We tested the effects of COVID-19 outbreak on psychological aspects and daily routines among Arab Israeli Children. An online cross-sectional survey was conducted among Arab Israeli parents, including behavioral and emotional aspects questionnaire and questions addressing using of screens, sleep, and physical activities. The results showed that, during the COVID-19 outbreak, 55.8% of the children asked to sleep in their parents' bed and 45% expressed fears they did not have before. Most of the children showed increased irritability, constant mood swings and nervousness about limits and messages, and 41.4% showed sleep difficulties. Concerning adaptive behaviors, more than 50% of the parents reported that their child became wiser, lazier, and was able to adapt the limits and restriction of the COVID-19 outbreak. Moreover, the children tended to increase their use of screens, used to sleep more time, and were less active physically. The results suggest that children are vulnerable to the COVID-19 outbreak psychological effects and highlight the need to reduce the psychological burden of this pandemic and the necessity of immediate intervention.
冠状病毒病 (COVID-19) 对成年人和儿童的负面心理影响已得到确认，如焦虑和睡眠障碍。然而，关于这场大流行对少数民族儿童影响的研究却很少。我们测试了 COVID-19 爆发对以色列阿拉伯儿童心理方面和日常生活的影响。对以色列阿拉伯父母进行了在线横断面调查，包括行为和情绪方面的问卷以及关于使用屏幕、睡眠和体育活动的问题。结果表明，在 COVID-19 爆发期间，55.8%的儿童要求睡在父母的床上，45%的儿童表示他们以前没有过恐惧。大多数儿童表现出易怒、情绪波动不断、对限制和信息感到紧张，41.4%的儿童出现睡眠困难。关于适应行为，超过 50%的父母报告说，他们的孩子变得更聪明、更懒惰，并且能够适应 COVID-19 爆发的限制和限制。此外，儿童倾向于增加使用屏幕的时间，睡眠时间增加，体力活动减少。研究结果表明，儿童容易受到 COVID-19 爆发的心理影响，强调需要减轻这场大流行的心理负担，有必要立即进行干预。
