The relationship between children's adaptive social behavior and the parents' marital adjustment and depression level in the covid-19 pandemic

Children's adaptive social behavior is closely related to the parents' psychological well-being and marital adjustment. The study seeks to examine the relationship between the parents' marital adjustment, depression levels, and child's adaptive social behavior by focusing on the period when the schools were closed due to the COVID-19 precautions. The study sample consists of 154 parents (77 mothers, 77 fathers) with children aged 2-8 (M = 4.80, SD = 1.92). For the study, both parents individually filled in an online questionnaire which included the Sociodemographic Information Form, the Revised Couple Adjustment Scale (RDAS), the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), and the Adaptive Social Behavior Inventory (ASBI). Simple linear regression and hierarchical regression via IBM SPSS for Windows 25 Statistics Standard (SPSS) were used to analyze the data. The findings conclude that, for parents, adaptive social behavior is related to the gender and age of the child. Thus, for parents, the scores of adaptive social behaviors in girls were higher than in boys, and the child's age was positively associated with adaptive social behavior. According to the mothers, marital adjustment is positively associated with adaptive social behavior, whereas, for the fathers, depression is negatively associated with adaptive social behavior. The study hopes to shed light on clinicians to determine the variables associated with the adaptive social behavior of the children in this period and to include the families in the therapy processes. To increase adaptive social behavior in the child, factors that are associated with increasing marital adjustment and reducing the depression levels of the parents should be included in the process.