Children's perspectives on friendships and socialization during the COVID‐19 pandemic: A qualitative approach

Abstract

Background Good quality friendships and relationships are critical to the development of social competence and are associated with quality of life and mental health in childhood and adolescence. Through social distancing and isolation restrictions, the COVID‐19 pandemic has had an impact on the way in which youth socialize and communicate with friends, peers, teachers and family on a daily basis. In order to understand children's social functioning during the pandemic, it is essential to gather information on their experiences and perceptions concerning the social changes unique to this period. The objective of this study was to document children and adolescents' perspectives regarding their social life and friendships during the COVID‐19 pandemic, through qualitative interviews. Methods Participants ( N = 67, 5–14 years) were recruited in May and June 2020. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted via a videoconferencing platform. A thematic qualitative analysis was conducted based on the transcribed and coded interviews (NVivo). Results The upheavals related to the pandemic provoked reflection among the participants according to three main themes, each of which included sub‐themes: (1) the irreplaceable nature of friendship, (2) the unsuspected benefits of school for socialization and (3) the limits and possibilities of virtual socialization. Conclusions The collection of rich, qualitative information on the perspectives of children and adolescents provides a deeper understanding of the consequences of the pandemic on their socialization and psychological health and contributes to our fundamental understanding of social competence in childhood.

Adolescent Experiences of the COVID-19 Pandemic and School Closures and Implications for Mental Health, Peer Relationships and Learning: A Qualitative Study in South-West England

“…The importance of peer relationships throughout adolescence is well documented in the literature [ 37 , 38 ]. In line with recent findings from a Canadian study [ 20 ], our results confirm that the primary difficulty for young people during lockdown and school closures was not spending time with their friends. This study highlights not only the importance of peer relationships to early adolescents, but the value young people place specifically on face-to-face contact.…”

“…This study highlights not only the importance of peer relationships to early adolescents, but the value young people place specifically on face-to-face contact. Again, a finding consistent with results from the Canadian sample shows that although virtual communication is convenient, it does not replace face-to-face peer interactions [ 20 ]. This lack of social contact was described by adolescents despite regular online contact with friends, with some students discussing feeling lonely and noticing that their friends had gone very quiet and not kept in touch.…”

“…This study recommended the importance of monitoring the supportiveness of online relationships. A recently published qualitative study of Canadian 67 children and adolescents (5–14 years) revealed three themes: (1) the irreplaceable nature of friendship; (2) the unsuspected benefits of school for socialisation and (3) the limits and possibilities of virtual socialisation [ 20 ]. This study covered a very wide range of ages and interviews took place fairly early on in the pandemic (May–June 2020).…”

The change in children's subjective relational social cohesion with family and friends during the COVID-19 pandemic: A multinational analysis

“…Some children explained that they do not know what to say to their friends, as they no longer share their daily lives, do not really know how to keep in touch, and miss playing in a group (Stoecklin et al, 2021). Many children felt estranged from their friends (Kutsar and Kurvet-Käosaar, 2021), although still missing them (Kutsar and Kurvet-Käosaar, 2021;Stoecklin et al, 2021;Larivière-Bastien et al, 2022). For example, in Germany, about 80% of children missed in-person contact with friends (Vogel et al, 2021).…”

Response to: Child and family factors associated with child mental health and well-being during COVID-19 by McArthur et al.

“…Similarly, the researchers did not consider that children may have used screens for socialization. During the pandemic, many children used screens to stay connected with their friends [ 3 ]. Socialization on screens may have had a positive impact on children’s mental health because it could have facilitated peer connectedness.…”