Resilience and coping mechanisms among children during COVID-19: A mixed-methods study grounded in attachment theory

The COVID-19 pandemic is an adverse experience for many, especially children. It is imperative that we strive to increase knowledge surrounding resiliency and healthy coping mechanisms of children, abilities that if used amidst stressful experiences, are attributed to favourable maternal attachment styles. As such, the proposed mixed-methods, cross-sectional study has three objectives: (1) to examine the impact of the overall COVID-19 pandemic on the resilience of elementary school children; (2) to explore the relationship between maternal attachment style and subsequent resilience; and (3) to determine coping mechanisms employed by children during the COVID-19 pandemic. To achieve this, 197 students grades 3-6 and their mothers will be recruited through the Thames Valley District School Board. To be eligible for the study, mothers must have at least one child attending an elementary school within the school board between the grades of 3-6 and be proficient in English. Children and their mothers will complete complementary online surveys via Qualtrics, inclusive of demographic information and a total of five validated questionnaires to measure attachment styles, resiliency, and coping mechanisms. Upon conclusion of the survey, children will audio record a response to an open-ended question regarding their overall experience of resiliency during COVID-19. Data analysis conducted in RStudio will compute measures of central tendency, dispersion, and correlational relationships between variables. Interpretive description will be performed on qualitative data. Findings from this study aim to inform how educators and parents can best support and understand children's resiliency amidst adverse circumstances, including the eventuality of future pandemics.