The Relationship between Covid-19 Pandemic Lockdown and Stress among Caregivers of Children with Autism in Kasarani Region, Nairobi County, Kenya

The general objective of this study was to determine the relationship between COVID- 19 pandemic lockdown and stress among caregivers of children with autism in Kasarani region, Nairobi County, Kenya. Mixed methods approach that combines phenomenological research design with correlational research was used. The target population was caregivers of children with autism residing within Kasarani region of Nairobi County. The total sample size was 50 caregivers of children with autism in the study location who were recruited through snowball sampling method. Data was collected using in-depth interview and structured questionnaire technique. For qualitative data, thematic analysis method was applied to determine patterns and themes regarding caregiver lived experiences drawn from the in depth-interviews. Quantitative data was analyzed by generating the percentage frequencies, mean and standard deviation as well as correlation technique using SPSS. These were presented using figures and tables. The findings of both qualitative and quantitative aspects of the study were triangulated to determine points of convergence or divergence. Results showed that as pertains to caregiver stress, a very high mean score was computed on a 5-point scale ( ̅=4.78, x=.577), suggesting that caregiver stress intensified. Five salient themes related to caregiver stress were apparent: caregiver burden, reduced social life, reduced support systems, intensified anxiety, and coping styles. As pertains cognitive challenges, the overall composite score was very high ( ̅=4.56, x=.509, N=40), signifying those cognitive challenges of children with autism worsened during the covid-19 pandemic lockdown. Further, a strong and statistically significant correlation coefficient was obtained between cognitive challenges composite score and caregiver stress index (r=.549, p