Gallemit I Marie Joy S, Mordeno Imelu G
School of Graduate Studies, College of Education, Mindanao State University - Iligan Institute of Technology, Andres Bonifacio Ave., Tibanga, Iligan City, 9200, Philippines.
Department of Professional Education, Mindanao State University, Iligan Institute of Technology, Andres Bonifacio Ave., Tibanga, Iligan City, 9200, Philippines.
BMC Psychol. 2025 Jul 1;13(1):644. doi: 10.1186/s40359-025-02390-z.
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has threatened the public's physical health and brought great stress, leading to the development of mental health issues. Despite increasing research exploring the mental health impact of COVID-19, none so far have investigated the mental health of Filipino left-behind emerging adult children (LBEAC). To address this gap, the current study examined the prevalence, best-fitting model, latent groups, and associated risk factors of anxiety and depression among LBEAC amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
A sample of 391 Filipino emerging adults aged 17 to 28, with at least one parent working overseas, was recruited to answer a packet of scales via an online platform.
The results revealed a one-factor model to be the best-fitting symptom structure model for both anxiety and depression. Further, the findings from the latent profile analyses revealed three latent groups with low, moderate, and severe levels of both anxiety and depression symptoms. In assessing the risk factors associated with anxiety and depression, the results consistently revealed that for socio-demographic characteristics, gender, high frequency of communication are associated with higher anxiety and depression. Moreover, in terms of pandemic-related experiences, LBEAC who have migrant parents who did not lose their jobs, who were worried about the health status of the migrant parents, whose allowance were reduced, and who were burdened by their limited financial resources are likely to belong to groups with moderate to severe anxiety and depression.
The results provide an empirical and pragmatic basis for practitioners, academicians/researchers, and policymakers in implementing intervention efforts to promote the psychological health of LBEAC amid the pandemic.
2019年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行威胁着公众的身体健康并带来了巨大压力，导致心理健康问题的出现。尽管越来越多的研究探讨了COVID-19对心理健康的影响，但迄今为止，尚无研究调查菲律宾留守儿童（LBEAC）的心理健康状况。为了填补这一空白，本研究调查了COVID-19大流行期间菲律宾留守儿童焦虑和抑郁的患病率、最佳拟合模型、潜在群体以及相关风险因素。
招募了391名年龄在17至28岁之间、至少有一位父母在海外工作的菲律宾新兴成年人，通过在线平台回答一系列量表。
结果显示单因素模型是焦虑和抑郁的最佳拟合症状结构模型。此外，潜在剖面分析的结果显示存在三个潜在群体，其焦虑和抑郁症状水平分别为低、中、高。在评估与焦虑和抑郁相关的风险因素时，结果一致显示，就社会人口学特征而言，性别、频繁沟通与更高的焦虑和抑郁相关。此外，在与大流行相关的经历方面，父母是移民且未失业、担心移民父母的健康状况、津贴减少以及经济资源有限而负担沉重的留守儿童，可能属于中度至重度焦虑和抑郁群体。
这些结果为从业者、学者/研究人员和政策制定者在大流行期间实施干预措施以促进菲律宾留守儿童的心理健康提供了实证和务实的基础。
