The Social Emotional Impact of COVID-19: Evaluating Children's Protective Factors

Abstract

During a pandemic of any kind, it is essential that strict attention be paid not only to children's physical health but also to the impact on children's mental health. This poster demonstrates the use of the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment to measure emotional social factors of early childhood students after a 4-month closure of a Head Start Program. The assessment first measured factors while children were attending the program pre-pandemic. Students spent the 4-month separation from the program at home until returning to the program in August 2020. This preliminary data suggests that children’s 4-month experience at home during the pandemic proved to show improvements in social emotional behavior.