Tyler Durden

The research comes from the Institute of Fiscal Studies and notes that children aged between four and seven were significantly more likely (52%) to be affected than 12- to 15 year-olds (42%).

The research also found that children whose parents were furloughed, mandatorily made to take a leave of absence from their jobs, were "significantly more likely to experience a worsening in their socio-emotional skills than those whose parents had not been furloughed (51% versus 45%)".

Essentially, kids whose families experienced hardship due to the lockdown were significantly more likely to have serious developmental issues.

The questions in the study included asking whether children had become "easily scared", "constantly fidgeting or squirming", or "generally obedient".

Author of the study Andrew McKendrick, an IFS research economist commented that "During the Covid-19 pandemic, children from all backgrounds saw their social and emotional skills worsen considerably."

“Children lived through many changes during these years: school closures, lack of contact with friends and family, and potentially devastating severe illness or death among loved ones,” McKendrick continued, adding that the lockdowns have had “multi-generational impacts.”

“Our research shows that another important driver of children’s declining skills was the economic disruptions experienced by their parents, whether or not those disruptions led to a large income loss,” McKendrick added.

Responding to the study, Children’s Commissioner Rachel de Souza said “I am deeply concerned by the findings of this research on children’s social and emotional skills.”

‘This study shows that the disruption the pandemic caused to children’s development has been long-lasting,” de Souza added.