Monitoring New Jersey Family Strengths and Needs in the COVID-19 Pandemic

Families with children, particularly lower-income families and those from racial/ethnic minority groups, have been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic due to interruptions of schooling, job loss, and negative health impacts. This project explores the impacts on New Jersey families through a series of surveys. A statewide representative survey (to be administered at two points in time) will examine overall effects. Three focused surveys will examine effects on specific types of families: 1) families with children who have intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDD), 2) families affected by domestic violence, and 3) families who are raising children of relatives or friends (kinship caregivers). Analyses will look at particular impacts on low-income, Black and Hispanic/Latinx families, and by region of NJ. This project is being led by investigators from CSHP in collaboration with the Rutgers Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling and is supported by a grant from the NJ Department of Children and Families.