The lockdown imposed during the coronavirus pandemic has contributed to raising health awareness and a sense of social responsibility among Saudi family members, according to a recent study.
The study, conducted by Saudi Arabia's Family Affairs Council (FAC), said the lockdown also helped enhance relationships and means of communication among family members.
The study was aimed at learning about the health, social and economic repercussions of the pandemic on families.
It indicated the success of the kingdom’s experience in raising awareness through media platforms and messages sent in this regard, prompting all public and private sector companies to interact and volunteer in spreading awareness messages about the pandemic.
The five-month study was conducted by FAC in cooperation with Almobdioon Center for Studies and Research in King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah.
It affirmed that 69 percent of those who took part in the study believed that the lockdown increased health awareness among family members and raised a sense of social responsibility, while 71 percent said they did not encounter the slightest difficulty in understanding health and preventive measures.
Meanwhile, 74 percent of the respondents said they would become more careful in dealing with pandemics.
According to the results of the study seen by Asharq Al-Awsat, 91 percent of families believe the lockdown has contributed to enhancing relationships, communication, and effective dialogue.
They realized the importance of distributing roles and household chores, as well as parents’ playing games with their children.
The study pointed out that during the lockdown, mothers did 49 percent of the household chores, followed by fathers with 34 percent, then sisters with eight percent, and brothers with seven percent.
It revealed the decrease in disagreements among family members, noting that 82 percent of the families who took part in this study sample did not practice violence in any way during the lockdown, while 60 percent of the families stated that there were no disputes between their members during this period.
The lockdown has also contributed to enhancing the culture of savings by 56 percent, the study said, indicating that 45 percent of the families decided to register their children in public schools instead of private or international schools.
Also, 76 percent of the families ate home-made food instead of ordering fast food from restaurants.
FAC Secretary-General Dr. Hala al-Twaijri affirmed the Council’s keenness to conduct similar studies in cooperation with academic bodies to identify the limits of the impact of the changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic on families and to take effective steps to minimize negative impact and maximize positive outcomes.
