Family ties become stronger during the pandemic : Difi study

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a positive impact on family cohesion in Qatar, a study by Doha International Family Institute (Difi) has highlighted. “Our study found that family relationships in Qatar have become stronger despite the challenges and stresses that families faced during the pandemic," Dr Azza Abdel Moneim, director of the Research Department at Difi told Gulf Times."Families managed to cope with the pandemic and implemented strategies to keep the members together. Families became stronger and were able to accommodate the challenges and overcome the obstacles,” she explained.The research was carried out in partnership with Qatar University's College of Education and the Department of Psychological Sciences. According to the study, 64% of the participants confirmed that the Covid-19 had positive impact on family relations. Family members became closer to each other and their relationships became stronger. One negative impact on the families during the lockdown period was that they could not visit their friends or relatives due to Covid protocols leading to some sort of social isolation for sometime.“Parents in particular spent more time with the family than before the pandemic, especially mothers who are working full time. This led parents to spend more quality time with their children. The pandemic helped families to bond with each other more than before,” continued, Dr Abdel Moneim. A total of 47 interviews were conducted - 27 Qataris and 20 non-Qataris. A total of 702 individuals, comprising 567 Qataris and 135 non-Qataris, responded to a survey. The study also showed that the participants had become more susceptible to obesity during the pandemic due to the absence of physical activities. The participants also noted that one of their major concerns was the inability to go for checkups at health facilities for fear of being infected with the virus.“The study also addressed the economic effects of the pandemic. The lockdown contributed to reducing financial spending, and thus changed individuals’ purchasing and consumption habits. Spending became focused on online shopping and buying home needs. The pandemic moreover led to salary reductions or pay cuts for some,” explained, the official.Dr Abdel Moneim remarked that the pandemic helped people realise that a lot of jobs can be done from home and that the workforce can easily adapt to changes. “This underscores the need to adopt family-friendly policies that we advocate, and which support parents as they bear the burdens of the period from pregnancy to childbirth and until the children reach school age. The child welfare study that we conducted before and after the pandemic showed that the percentage of those who spend more than 30 hours a week with their children had increased from 29% to 45%,” she maintained.The official also stated that Difi has several suggestions for the welfare of families in the country and beyond. "We recommend a social educational support programme for families such as a hotline for consultancy providing psychological and moral support to help families and enhance their ability to adapt. Another recommendation is a social support programme for the elderly people. We also advocate for the establishment of interventions programmes for children to ensure that community-based mechanisms are in place to protect children. Finally we suggest the creation of a fund to support affected private entrepreneurs," concluded, Dr Abdel Moneim.