The changing landscape of paternal mental health in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK experienced a multitude of restrictions, leading to a deterioration in the nation’s mental health and the doubling of male suicide rates. Parents had the additional complexity of balancing work, childcare and home-schooling. Objectives/Aims: Research suggests that the psychological impact was greater for mothers compared to fathers, however, fathers are often underrepresented in the research. Consequently, this research aimed to explore the impact of the pandemic on paternal wellbeing, compared to mothers and men without children living at home. Methodology: A review was conducted to inform the research questions. Longitudinal data from the United Kingdom Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) allowed for changes in fathers’ (n=596) psychological wellbeing to be explored, compared to mothers (n=940) and men without children (n=5530). Data was obtained at five time points; pre-pandemic (March 2019- March 2020, T1), during (April 2020/ September 2020/ January 2021, T2-T4) and post-lockdowns (August 2021- August 2022, T5). Parent were not selected as dyads, however, may have resided in the same household. Surveys captured data relating to potential stressor variables, which were categorised into wellbeing, social and economic factors. Psychological wellbeing was measured using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), with higher scores indicating higher psychological distress (PsD). Results: Linear mixed models were used to compared changes in PsD over time, including the impact of stressor variables on PsD over the course of the pandemic. Age, ethnicity and educational attainment were included as covariates. Differences in PsD and the impact of stressor variables were found between groups. Risk factors for fathers included loneliness, life dissatisfaction, living with a partner, average or less than average degrees of happiness with a partner and living with a child aged 0-11 years of age. A final linear mixed model was created for fathers to provide a more comprehensive account of the interaction between these factors. Loneliness and life dissatisfaction continued to have a significant effect on paternal mental health when accounting for living with a partner, happiness with partner and living with a child aged 0-11 years. Conclusions: Findings highlight the need for gender-inclusive parental policies and mental health interventions. Implications were conceptualised within the challenging and changing expectations surrounding fatherhood and masculinity.