COVID-19 experiences and family resilience: A latent class analysis

Objective: This study identifies subtypes of families with varying levels of economic and relational resilience during the pandemic and evaluates the factors associated with these subtypes in Singapore. Background: Despite mounting evidence on the detrimental impact of the pandemic on family well-being, we examine how resources at different levels may enhance family resilience. Method: A sample of 2818 households was extracted from two waves of the Singapore Longitudinal Early Development Study (SG-LEADS). Latent class analysis was conducted to classify subgroups of families. Multinomial logistic regression was applied to examine the association between the subgroup membership and multilevel factors including mother's self-efficacy, family socioeconomic status, quality of family time, mother's work-life conflict, partner cooperation, neighborhood environment, and government and community support. Results: We identified six distinct groups of families: "economically and relationally fragile" (4%), "economically struggling but relationally improved" (11%), "economically struggling but relationally stable" (14%), "economically secure and relationally stable" (28%), "economically secure but relationally deteriorating" (11%) and "economically secure and relationally strengthened" (31%). Families with higher socioeconomic status tend to show economic resilience. Families with mothers exhibiting higher self-efficacy and lower work-life conflict, coupled with quality family time, better neighborhood, greater government and community support, are more relationally resilient. Conclusion: The study provides a nuanced picture of family dynamics under a global crisis, highlighting the multilevel resources that are correlated with family resilience.