Covid lockdowns have brought back the tradition of families having dinner together, according to a new study. Research found not only did the pandemic lead to more home-cooked meals, but it also improved the quality of family time during these meals.
The American study revealed families who ate together more frequently during the pandemic had more positive interactions, shared news and information, and even used technology like video conferencing to connect with distant relatives. Dr Anne Fishel was the lead author of the study and a researcher in family therapy at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
She stated: “The predominance of past research on family dinners has focused on frequency as the key predictor of benefits for children and adolescents. This study highlights the importance of examining both frequency and quality to understand the full picture of how shared meals can impact families.”
The researchers analysed data from a survey of 517 diverse parents across the United States, conducted in May 2021. Their goal was to explore changes in the frequency and quality of family dinners during the pandemic.
Participants were asked about dinner frequency, quality, and post-pandemic expectations. The survey included questions about positive and negative interactions, family support, and incorporation of the outside world.
The study asked participants if they ate dinner with their family “much less”, “less”, “about the same”. More than 60% of the respondents reported eating dinner together more often during the pandemic compared with pre-pandemic times, according to the findings published in the journal Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice.
There was also a significant increase in positive interactions – such as expressing gratitude, laughing or feeling connected – during family meals. Dr Fishel said: “Specifically, 56% said they increased talking about their days during dinner, 60% said they increased talking about their identity as a family, 60% said they increased expressing gratitude, 67% said they increased laughing together and 59% said they felt more connected to each other around the dinner table.”
She added this positive trend was observed across different income levels, education, age, gender and race. The pandemic also introduced new elements to family dinners, including remote dining with extended family members and more discussions about current events.
According to Dr Fishel, many families used video conferencing to connect with relatives, potentially strengthening a sense of belonging to a larger family unit. Most parents who increased the use of technology for remote dinners during the pandemic plan to continue doing so, she said.
The team discovered families are increasingly incorporating news and global events into their dinner table discussions, potentially providing a “safe space” for children to express their worries and queries. Dr Fishel suggests the rise in shared meal times during the pandemic may have had “lasting positive effects” on family relationships.
She stated: “The pandemic changed many aspects of our lives, some for the better. Even though parents did not purposely sign up to have more shared mealtimes, increases in family dinners were largely linked with improvements in the quality of pandemic-era family dinners.”
Dr Fishel also emphasised the potential benefits of using digital technology to connect with extended family members and integrating current affairs into dinner conversations. She added: “The continued use of remote technology to connect with those not physically present may bring ongoing opportunities for family bonding and children’s feeling a sense of belonging to a larger unit, which we know is protective for their well-being.”
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