The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced many new stressors for parents worldwide. This study investigated the link between parents’ cumulative stress and psychological distress during the pandemic. Parents’ emotion dysregulation was further examined as a moderator between cumulative stress and psychological distress. A total of 155 parents in the United States participated in the present study. Path analysis was conducted to evaluate the effects of cumulative stress, including COVID-19-related stress, general stress, and parental stress, as well as emotion dysregulation on parents’ psychological distress, including depression and anxiety. The present findings indicated that parents’ general stress, parental stress, and emotion dysregulation predicted symptoms of depression. Emotion dysregulation further exacerbated the effect of parental stress on depression. Parents’ general stress and emotion dysregulation were also predictive of anxiety symptoms. In addition, emotion dysregulation exacerbated the effect of COVID-19-related stress on parental anxiety. This study revealed that parents’ stress and emotion dysregulation were additively and interactively associated with their psychological distress. The findings inform researchers and practitioners that parents’ stressors have cumulative effects on their psychological distress and that emotion dysregulation can worsen the negative effect of stress on mental health in challenging times, such as the pandemic.

中文翻译：

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COVID-19 大流行期间父母的抑郁和焦虑：累积压力和情绪失调的作用

COVID-19 大流行给全世界的父母带来了许多新的压力。这项研究调查了大流行期间父母累积的压力与心理困扰之间的联系。进一步研究了父母的情绪失调作为累积压力和心理困扰之间的调节因素。美国共有 155 名家长参与了本研究。路径分析旨在评估累积压力（包括与COVID-19相关的压力、一般压力和父母压力）以及情绪失调对父母心理困扰（包括抑郁和焦虑）的影响。目前的研究结果表明，父母的一般压力、父母压力和情绪失调可预测抑郁症状。情绪失调进一步加剧了父母压力对抑郁症的影响。父母的普遍压力和情绪失调也是焦虑症状的预测因素。此外，情绪失调加剧了与 COVID-19 相关的压力对父母焦虑的影响。这项研究表明，父母的压力和情绪失调与他们的心理困扰呈叠加且交互的关系。研究结果告诉研究人员和从业者，父母的压力源会对他们的心理困扰产生累积影响，而在疫情等充满挑战的时期，情绪失调可能会加剧压力对心理健康的负面影响。