When in January 2020 I first heard about a virus sweeping through China, I rolled into a big branded pharmacy and bought the last 2 remaining anti-viral hand-sanitiser. These types of items were already flying off the shelves. Those of us purchasing at that time would most likely be the ones preparing for a pandemic, we at best guessed the virus would be here very soon, and at… Read More »
Listening to young people during Covid-19 challenges common adult assumptions about their peer relationships
The experiences and perspectives of children and young people are generally missing from coverage and discussions of the Covid-19 pandemic and its effects. This is not a unique situation, as children’s status in society positions them as a marginalised group. In this blog post, I will focus on what children and young people’s experiences of … Read More »
Birth and beyond in a pandemic: Findings from a project with mothers in the England lockdown of spring 2020
When I found myself sitting with PPE-clad nurses in a GP surgery with my 8 week old infant being vaccinated amidst pin-drop silence in an empty clinic, I knew that I would raise her, locked down, unable to meet friends, my parents unable to fly in from India to see me, unable to attend post-natal clinics, unable to catch day-time moments of sleep with our 4 year old also home now, as nurseries closed… Read More »
COVID: Outside Our Door
A pandemic is outside our door, outside the safe walls of our little home. We’re both cooped up, inside two tiny rooms, trying to maneuver our way through another period of unchartered waters. Over the years, you grew from a small boy to a young man. And in this time… Read More »
The vicious circle of familism in housing and care during Covid-19 in Greece
COVID-19 impacts all aspects of family life and inter-generational relationships, through housing and informal systems of social care in Greece. In the centre of the political discourse is home and its association with care.
‘Stay safe’ is the wish among people both in personal and work-related communication as well as… Read More »
Capturing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the family relationships of young fathers
The COVID-19 pandemic is impacting on all our lives, albeit in markedly different ways. A frequently over-looked population, especially in family research, are young fathers. Even before the crisis, young fathers (aged 25 and under) already faced a range of disadvantages and were stigmatised… Read More »
Digital by default: the new normal of family life under COVID-19
Just a few weeks ago, children went to school, parents worried about their screen time at home, and the digital future was the stuff of science fiction. Under COVID-19, school has gone online, worries about screen time have gone through the roof, and life is fast becoming digital by default.… Read More »
The social life of self-harm, in lockdown
There has been much written recently on the effects of the lock down on mental health. How do people react to being alone? How does isolation reinforce previous vulnerabilities, and give rise to the perceived need to reinvent one’s everyday life in the face of rampant anxiety? … Read More »
Introducing The Centre for Transformative Change: Educational and Life Transitions (TCELT) blog
There is a growing body of activity focused on collecting and disseminating the early experiences of COVID-19 and its wide-ranging impact on communities of research, policy and practice. The Centre for Transformative Change: Educational and Life Transitions (TCELT) blog series is one such initiative.… Read More »
Locking Down or Breaking Up: Newly Cohabitating Couples in the Time of Coronavirus
The lockdown in the United Kingdom has changed relationships and dating drastically. Gone are the one night stands and the casual hook-ups, and budding relationships have either been put on hold or ramped up to warp-speed. Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer of England, gave some unexpected advice to new couples during a press briefing: move in together… Read More »
Stay-at-home measures and domestic violence amid the Covid-19 crisis
Media attention has picked up on the risk of an increase in domestic violence in conditions of lockdown under the Covid-19 emergency. It is obvious that being confined to the home with an abusive partner is likely to have dramatic affects on the everyday life of women in this situation. For obvious reasons, direct evidence of… Read More »
Research with young environmental activists in the UK: challenges and opportunities presented by COVID Lockdown to the researcher and the researched
Like many researchers, particularly those whose focus is empirical, my data collection was stopped in its tracks in the days leading up to lock down in the UK in March 2020. Along with my research grinding to a halt, so did my ability to think beyond the basics in those days. This rotated around; how could I keep myself and family safe… Read More »
Families and relationships amidst the Covid-19 pandemic: Call for blog submissions
COVID-19 is impacting on all aspects of family life and personal relationships, as well as on our formal and informal systems of social care. How are we ‘doing’ family life and practicing intimacies during lockdown? What are the consequence on our intergenerational relations – with the youngest and oldest – and how are we protecting those most vulnerable?… Read More »
COVID and ‘BIG QUAL’
It seems appropriate to review the possibilities of secondary analysis of data that has already been gathered by face-to-face techniques, as the current pandemic closes down many such forms of research. The substitution of virtual means of data collection for face-to-face means, such as interviewing using internet telephony, is not the only possible… Read More »