Early parental loss and intimate relationships in adulthood: A nationwide study.

Abstract

Being able to form and maintain intimate relationships is an essential part of development and the early loss of a parent may negatively affect this ability. This study investigates the association between parental loss before the age of 18 years and the formation and dissolution of marriage and cohabitation relationships in adulthood, in relation to factors that may help identify potentially vulnerable subgroups of bereaved children, that is, sex of the deceased parent, cause of death and child's age at the time of death. Using data from national registries, we followed all children born in Denmark between 1970 and 1995 (n = 1,525,173) and used Poisson regression models to assess rate ratios by gender for relationship formation and separation according to early parental loss. We stratified the analyses by sex of the deceased parent, cause of death and child's age at the time of death, and adjusted for the confounding effects of parental income, education level, and psychiatric illness. We found that parental loss was associated with a higher rate of relationship formation for young women, but not young men, and higher rates of separation for both men and women. The associations with separation were stronger for persons who lost a parent to suicide than to other causes. The effects were relatively small, a possible testimony to the resilience of developmental processes in most children. However, as long-term relationships are associated with physical and psychological health, interventions for bereaved children and families are important, especially in the subgroup bereaved by suicide. (PsycINFO Database Record

Educational attainment in offspring bereaved by sudden parental death from external causes: a national cohort study from birth and throughout adulthood

“…The present study adds to previous literature stating that individuals who have experienced parental death by external causes have an increased risk of suffering from a range of unfortunate psychosocial challenges such as psychiatric disorders, marital dissolution, suicide, and criminal activity [2][3][4]25]. In addition to a reduced likelihood of completing compulsory education, similar to what has been previously reported by Berg and colleagues [6], bereaved children have a significantly reduced probability of attaining all educational levels.…”

“…The sudden death of a parent from an accident, suicide or homicide constitutes one of the most traumatic and significant life events a child or adolescent can experience [1]. Related to such a traumatic loss, offspring have an increased risk of severe psychosocial problems, including psychiatric disorders, marital dissolution, violent crime and suicide [2][3][4]. Parental loss has also been found to negatively affect offspring's school performance and educational attainment: Reduced likelihood of enrolment and graduation as well as lower mean grades [5][6][7] is accompanied by reduced expectations and aspirations for future education and career [8] in bereaved children compared to children who have not experienced the loss of a parent.…”

Loss in the family – A reflection on how schools can support their students

“…Many teachers have reported that academic performance may decline following the loss of a family member. This notion has been supported in a large Danish cohort study, which uncovered that children who lose a parent in childhood have up to 26% less of a chance of acquiring a university degree (Høeg et al, 2018). In particular, students seem to struggle with concentration and memory issues, which can translate into learning difficulties (Dyregrov, 2006).…”

Familial Risk Factors and Emotional Problems in Early Childhood: The Promotive and Protective Role of Children’s Self-Efficacy and Self-Concept

“…Familial risk factors are characteristics of family members as well as attributes of the family as a whole. Examples of familial risk factors are (a) socio-economic aspects such as familial poverty, low parental education, or single parent family (e.g., Jasiulione and Jusiene, 2019 ), (b) interpersonal aspects such as familial conflict, maltreatment, or abuse (e.g., Keil et al, 2018 ), (c) critical life events such as death or illness of significant others, frequent move, or migration (e.g., Høeg et al, 2018 ), and (d) other risks including parental drug abuse or parental mental illness (e.g., Ahun and Côté, 2019 ).…”