Abstract
Background: COVID-19 has exacerbated material hardship among grandparent-headed kinship families. Grandparent-headed kinship families receive financial assistance, which may mitigate material hardship and reduce child neglect risk. Objective: This study aims to examine (1) the association between material hardship and child neglect risk; and (2) whether financial assistance moderates this association in a sample of kinship grandparent-headed families during COVID-19. Participants and setting: Cross-sectional survey data were collected from a convenience sample of grandparent-headed kinship families (not necessarily child welfare involved) (N = 362) in the United States via Qualtrics Panels online survey. Methods: Descriptive, bivariate, and negative binomial regression were conducted using STATA 15.0. Results: Experiencing material hardship was found to be associated with an increased risk of child neglect, and receiving financial assistance was associated with a decreased risk of child neglect in the full sample and a subsample with household income > $30,000. Receiving financial assistance buffered the negative effect of material hardship on child neglect risk across analytic samples, and receiving SNAP was a significant moderator in the full sample. Among families with a household income ≤ $30,000, receiving SNAP and foster care payments was associated with a decreased risk of child neglect, while receiving TANF and unemployment insurance was associated with an increased risk of child neglect. Among families with household income > $30,000, only receiving SNAP was associated with a decreased risk of child neglect. Conclusions: This study suggests the potential importance of providing concrete financial assistance, particularly SNAP and foster care payments, to grandparent-headed kinship families in efforts to decrease child neglect risk during COVID-19.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | 105258 |
Journal | Child Abuse and Neglect |
Volume | 121 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 2021 |
Keywords
- COVID-19
- Child neglect
- Financial assistance
- Foster care payment
- Grandparents
- Kinship care
- Material hardship
- SNAP
- TANF
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
- Developmental and Educational Psychology
- Psychiatry and Mental health