Pandemic’s mental toll: Low-income mothers in SG can be tough as nails

The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc not only on the physical but also on the emotional and mental health of people worldwide. But despite the dread and uncertainties, locally, the mental health of financially strained mothers has remined relatively stable owing to an internal resilience that is bolstered by significant resources provided by the Singapore government, as reported in a study.

Results of a survey conducted in a cohort of 424 mothers from low-income families revealed no significant increase in stress levels, depression, and anxiety scores. Most of them reported experiencing higher stress levels, although only a few considered themselves in despair. [BMJ Open 2022;12:e052103]

There was a small number of mothers who lost their own jobs (10.8 percent) or income earners in their families (15.8 percent). Job permanency emerged as a protective factor against depression, with even low-skilled and low-paid jobs such as cleaners and grocery workers contributing to a sense of security of income. Meanwhile, being married had a protective effect on anxiety, such that having a spouse to weather the financial stress with was seen to mitigate the sense of threat and anticipated risk of the loss of income earners in the women’s households.

At home, the women reported that they felt stressed about managing the home-based learning of multiple children because of school closure, along with a limited natural support network because of social distancing.

Despite the financial and emotional stress reported, the mothers seemed to have maintained a reasonable level of hope. Of note, they reported different strategies in coping with the financial distress, with government COVID-19 support grants cited by many as their main financial buffer.

Aside from the grants, the mothers also proactively looked for another job, participated in skills upgrading training, or started small home-based businesses.

“Not only did the low-income mothers use government payouts, but they were also knowledgeable in applying through the assistance of social workers, other applicable COVID-19 grants. [Being] well informed of community resources, including Family Service Centres and Social Service Offices, and willingness to step forward to seek help revealed their proactive adaptive behaviours,” according to the study authors from the National University of Singapore.

The authors pointed out that such proactive coping could partly be explained by the fact that the mothers were familiar with managing crisis due to being in low-income brackets.

“The viable option for them is to choose ‘this is what we have to do’ survival mentality instead of resignation and passivity,” they said.

Yet, the internal resilience exhibited by the women should be seen within the external context of the society. The availability of COVID-19 payout grants, according to the authors, was key to the coping processes and resilience in the familial and individual levels of low-income families, thus enhancing their stress-adaption processes. [Couns Psychol Q 1996;9:297-307]

“Government COVID-19 payouts were cited as an important resource that tided the mothers over the income reduction months and prevented them from plunging into a state of crisis. As a result, the mothers have gathered various adaptive strategies to cope with the unexpected financial distress,” the authors noted.

“Singapore has a strong fiscal capacity with a total national reserve that is estimated to be well above SGD 500 billion (approximately USD 370 billion), and this reserve has been drawn on during times of crisis… This translated to practical and timely financial help for its residents as cash transfer were vital for the poor who can spend them on necessities, whereas unemployment benefits supported consumption for those who experienced job loss,” they continued. [tinyurl.com/yysokpvw; tinyurl.com/yazmag4g]

Taken together, the study confirms that the injection of fiscal policies by the Singapore government was effectively geared to save the livelihoods of the people, the authors said. “However, as Singapore begins transition from a pandemic to an endemic, a vital question to ask is: what does this mean for the livelihood and mental health of these poor mothers? This is a potential area for future research.”