What are the fivefold hardships that have befallen moms during the pandemic?

This series reports on changes in moms' attitudes and behaviors due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
InParts 1and 2, we reported how the pandemic has altered moms' attitudes and behaviors regarding childcare and daily life. This time, we focus on five challenges moms face, identified through Mama Lab's original survey, examining the factors driving these changes and future trends.

[Mama Lab]
A work tank that sincerely engages with the true feelings of mothers and children to propose solutions. Established in 2008 with the vision: "We want to revitalize the next-generation family market by focusing on the mother's perspective." It predicts the future direction of mothers, children, and families, providing real insights and solutions to help numerous companies and organizations solve business and social challenges.

       
 

"I feel like all I do is cook..." With fewer takeout and dining-out options, moms' cooking burden is increasing

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted society in many ways, but it has also increased the struggles of moms.
The first hardship is the "increased burden of housework" on mothers.

<Graph 1> shows results from Mama Lab's original survey, "Survey on Moms' Attitudes in Facing the Pandemic," asking about changes in household chores and childcare compared to before COVID. "I spend more time doing housework" 56.2% (applies, somewhat applies, combined; same below), "I do housework more frequently" 55.8%, and "My housework burden has increased" 51.8% – clearly showing a widespread increase in the load of housework.

Furthermore, looking at the breakdown of increased household chores in <Graph 2>, "Cooking (preparation)" was the highest at 47.4%. This was followed by "Cleaning up after meals and washing dishes" at 32.7%, suggesting that meal-related chores have increased due to COVID-19 restrictions.

This likely reflects the shift where activities previously handled by eating out or takeout have now been replaced by home cooking.

"Income has dropped, making household finances tight..." Pandemic-induced income loss strains household budgets

The second major concern cited is "a decrease in household income putting pressure on finances."
In the first installment, we reported that "point activities" were booming among moms. While moms are making efforts to help the household budget even a little, looking at <Graph 3>, 23% of respondents, meaning over 20% of households, answered that their "annual income has decreased," revealing the current reality of strained household finances.

"I need some alone time sometimes!" Being together all the time actually increases stress for moms.

The third struggle is "increased stress" due to the lack of personal time.

The sudden closure of kindergartens, nurseries, and schools due to COVID-19 cases increased children's home learning opportunities. Simultaneously, remote work became the norm not only for mothers themselves but also for their husbands, significantly increasing the time mothers spent with their families.

Looking at the difference in stress levels before and after COVID-19 in <Graph 4>, the factor "not being able to get time alone" has increased by approximately 8.2% compared to before the pandemic.

While the new work style is appreciated by many who have experienced it, it seems to be contributing to increased stress for mothers who can't go out and have lost their personal time.

"I want my children to have various experiences..." Moms are filled with anxiety over lost opportunities for experiences

The fourth source of distress is "anxiety about the impact on children due to reduced real-world experiences."

Regarding learning opportunities at school, many schools introduced online learning anticipating class closures. However, real-life experiences like school trips have decreased. Moms seem anxious about how this will affect their children going forward.

When asked "What impact do you feel event cancellations have on children?", 82.8% responded, "I feel children's opportunities to experience various things (in reality) are decreasing." "Concerns about impacts on development and education" were also high at 55.9%.

The uncertainty about how the loss of real-world experiences will affect children's development, coupled with two years of not knowing what measures to take or what the right answer is, is likely fueling this vague anxiety.

"I've lost chances to meet up with mom friends too..." Moms isolated by the pandemic, losing places to exchange information

The fifth hardship is "isolation due to disconnection from society."
<Graph 6> shows changes in social interactions before and after COVID. Relationships that weakened most notably include: "Long-time friends/acquaintances" (49.5%), "Distant relatives" (38.5%), and "Mom friends met in person (at daycare, school, extracurriculars, etc.)" (37.3%). This indicates even interactions with regular in-person mom friends have decreased.

Previously, mothers relieved stress by casually sharing the challenges of childcare and parenting information. However, during the pandemic, they could neither gather casually nor converse freely, leading to a growing sense of isolation.

Thus, the fivefold hardships the pandemic has imposed on mothers are:
① Increased household chores ② Reduced household income straining finances ③ Increased stress from lack of personal time ④ Anxiety about children's development due to reduced real-world experiences ⑤ Isolation from being cut off from society

Despite the stress, staying positive during the pandemic! Making life enjoyable and easier through ingenuity

However, new trends are also emerging. <Graph 7> shows changes in how household chores and childcare are handled compared to before the pandemic. 49.9% responded, "I no longer feel the need to do chores perfectly; doing them adequately is fine now," while 41.8% said, "I now do chores frequently in small chunks of free time rather than all at once." This suggests mothers are adapting their approach to chores flexibly to fit their changed lives and managing their emotions to avoid feeling overwhelmed.

Regarding interactions with children, 42.7% reported "I've gotten my children into the habit of doing their own things," while 39.6% said "I've started teaching my children how to do household chores."

Even amidst challenging circumstances, moms are proactively seeking and implementing what they can do. Even after the pandemic subsides, new ways of family interaction and new approaches to household chores are likely to become firmly established as part of a new lifestyle.

To meet the needs of these mothers, who are adapting flexibly and embracing change in their daily lives despite difficulties, community and corporate services must also evolve.

Moving forward, Mama Lab will continue to observe families through information gathering and insight development, sharing findings with society to help moms live vibrant, smiling lives.

[Survey Overview]
Survey Method: Online survey
Survey Participants:
◆Screening※Sampled to reflect the population composition of women aged 20-59 with children
・Women aged 20-59 with children (DB-registered "with children")
◆Main Survey
・Women with children
・Living with spouse + children (youngest child aged 0–junior high school)
Survey Area: Nationwide
Survey Period:
◆Screening: Tuesday, December 14, 2021 - Sunday, December 19, 2021
◆Main Survey: December 17 (Fri) to 19 (Sun), 2021
Sample Size: 600 samples
Survey Implementation: Dentsu Macromill Insight, Inc.