Family Resilience and Coping in Disasters, Pandemics, and Large-Scale Crises: A Systematic Review.

In 30 seconds

This systematic review synthesized peer-reviewed research on family resilience and coping during disasters, pandemics, and sustained adversity. Following PRISMA 2020 principles, the authors included 42 studies in a qualitative synthesis using narrative and thematic methods. Family resilience was commonly characterized as a dynamic, family-level process involving shared meaning-making, organizational flexibility, and effective communication. Parenting practices repeatedly appeared to link family resilience with child adjustment. Resilience-oriented family interventions were reported to have overall beneficial effects across disaster, pandemic, and serious illness contexts, with no evidence of harm.

Key findings

• The qualitative synthesis included 42 studies across disaster, pandemic, and sustained-adversity contexts.
• Family resilience was most often described through shared meaning-making, organizational flexibility, and effective communication.
• Parenting practices repeatedly emerged as a pathway linking family resilience with child adjustment.
• Resilience-oriented family interventions showed overall beneficial effects, with no evidence of harm.

Why it matters

The review frames adaptation to crises as involving family-level processes, not only individual coping. Its findings highlight communication, flexible organization, shared meaning, and supportive parenting as recurring features associated with resilience and child adjustment. This perspective may help inform psychosocial support and preparedness efforts that account for family functioning during prolonged adversity.

What to keep in mind

The synthesis was qualitative and narrative, so the abstract does not provide pooled effect estimates or quantify intervention benefits.