Media Releases and Opportunities
» Go to news mainMedia opportunity: Involuntary celibates suggest social media apps fuel the growth of their community: Dalhousie University study
For families across Canada and around the world, the pandemic disrupted most parts of their lives. From childcare to working from home, COVID-19 forced parents to alter their routines and take on new responsibilities. For many, that involved educating their kids at home.
A new study by researchers at Dalhousie University has found that may have come at a price.
The paper, recently published in Social Sciences, surveyed almost 800 couples across Canada about their experiences homeschooling their children and their alcohol consumption in April 2020 when schools were first closed due to the pandemic. The researchers were interested in finding out how that added responsibility might affect couple’s work–family conflict and alcohol use, and how that might break down along gender lines.
They found that the responsibility of educating kids at home during the pandemic fell largely to women. In addition, homeschooling couples experienced more conflict between family and work than couples who were not homeschooling, and this was particularly true for women with respect to family duties interfering with their work. Women who spent more time homeschooling tended to drink more frequently than women who did less homeschooling. And the more time women spent homeschooling, the more frequently their male partners drank. In contrast, the more time men spent homeschooling children, the less frequently women drank.
The authors suggest that school closures and the resulting loss of supports for parents may have substantial negative ramifications both for work–family conflict and drinking. They recommend families -- particularly women -- be provided with better mental health and alcohol-use supports, as well as educational assistance when schools are closed during large-scale viral outbreaks.
Danika DesRoches, a graduate student in Dalhousie’s Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and first author of the study, and Dr. Sherry Stewart, a professor in Dalhousie’s Department of Psychiatry and senior author of the study, are available to discuss the research and how women could benefit from men assuming a more equitable share of the homeschooling duties.
-30-
Media contact:
Alison Auld
Senior Research Reporter
Communications, Marketing and Creative Services
Dalhousie University
Cell: 1-902-220-0491
Recent News
- Media opportunity: Youth voices at centre of Dalhousie University researcher's examination of mental health programs to determine what supports best meet their needs
- Media opportunity: Dalhousie University researchers address high epilepsy rates and stigma in rural Zambia ahead of International Epilepsy Day
- Media release: Dalhousie University researchers receive $7.5 million for projects that will improve mental health and addictions care for young people, and create healthier communities in Nova Scotia through local collaboration
- Media release: Researchers at Dalhousie University find pregnancy may increase risk of mental illness in people with multiple sclerosis
- Media release: New industry‑focused R&D hub receives $1.4M from province to spark semiconductor sector in Nova Scotia
- Media Release: Cognitive behavioural program co‑developed by Dalhousie University researcher yields promising results in preventing transition to substance use disorders in teenagers
- Media opportunity: Single‑celled organisms with superpowers shown to buffer fertilizer input into the world's oceans by storing large amounts of nitrogen and phosphate and fighting harms to the marine environment
- Media Release: Dalhousie University receives $32M to lead national network for innovation, commercialization and entrepreneurship skills training