Exploring the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on parents’ perceptions of play and children’s mental health

Objectives: This study explored the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on parents’ perceptions of play and its benefits for children’s mental health.

Design: A mixed methods case study design was employed.

Methods: Without specific selection criteria, invitations were sent through social networking platforms (Facebook, WhatsApp). In the case study, parents (N = 12) aged 36 to 55 participated in semi-structured interviews on the perception of play one year before the pandemic. Next, parents completed the Parents’ Perception of Child’s Play Scale 10 months after the pandemic began. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The data were categorized as feelings of play, free choice, playmates, types of play, and environments. Quantitative data were tested through correlation analysis.

Results: The parents agreed that play promotes mental health but they preferred that children focus on academic study instead. The quantitative study showed statistically significant correlations between parents’ positive perception of play and children’s physical, emotional, and social development, which is consistent with the results of the first study. Additionally, younger parents (36–40 years) showed greater acceptance of children’s play after academic work, while older parents (51–55 years) only allowed children to play on weekends.

Conclusions: Following the startling impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, parents prefer the balance and benefits of play for children’s development and academic work adjustment, especially in the face of sudden changes. However, this study is limited by the small sample size of the case study, which also limits the statistical information of the second study.