Impact of COVID-19 lockdown on communication development in young children: A retrospective descriptive study from Hubli-Dharwad region

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns disrupted early childhood environments, limiting social interaction, structured play, and caregiver engagement, which may have adversely affected communication development in children aged two to five years. This study aimed to profile communication abilities in young children suspected of developing communication disturbances following the lockdown in the Hubli-Dharwad region.
A retrospective descriptive design was employed with ten children (8 males, 2 females) aged 2–5 years from middle-upper and upper-class families. Data collection occurred between June 2021 and December 2022. Post-lockdown assessments included the Receptive–Expressive Emergent Language Scale (REELS) and the Communication DEALL (ComDEALL) Developmental Checklist to evaluate receptive and expressive language, cognitive, and social-communicative skills. Retrospective parental reports and an investigator-developed checklist captured pre-linguistic abilities, social-behavioural functioning, and screen exposure during lockdown, while clinical observations documented attention, eye contact, initiation, imitation, and responsiveness to verbal prompts. Quantitative data were summarized descriptively, and qualitative patterns were thematically analyzed.
All children demonstrated delays in expressive and receptive language, with expressive skills more affected. Over half showed deficits in pre-linguistic skills, including attention, eye contact, and concentration. Behavioural concerns such as irritability, inattention, restlessness, and limited peer interaction were observed. Higher daily screen exposure (≥4 hours) was associated with more pronounced language delays and attentional difficulties. Clinical observations confirmed poor initiation, minimal reciprocal communication, and limited joint attention. These findings suggest that communication delays and behavioural concerns may be linked to restricted social interaction, limited parental engagement, and excessive screen exposure during the lockdown. Early identification, structured parent–child interaction, moderated screen use, and opportunities for social play are recommended to support post-pandemic recovery in young children.