Annotation: Childhood bereavement following parental death‏

Abstract


Psychological outcomes in children who have experienced the death of a parent are heterogeneous. One child in five is likely to develop psychiatric disorder. In the year following bereavement, children commonly display grief, distress, and dysphoria. Nonspecific emotional and behavioural difficulties among children are often reported by surviving parents and the bereaved children themselves. The highest rates of reported difficulties are found in boys. This review identifies the moderating and mediating variables that lead to some children being more vulnerable to disturbance than others following parental death. Limitations and gaps in the recent bereavement literature are identified. Theoretical and methodological advances that are necessary for a coherent account of childhood bereavement are outlined.



Linda Dowdney | source: Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 408 |
Categories: Psychology Health


Other articles

Self-efficacy, academic performance and school transition among orphaned adolescents in southern Uganda

Introduction: Self-efficacy is critical to adolescents’ development. This study examined the relationship between self-efficacy,…

Read more

Effects of Stigma on the Mental Health of Adolescents Orphaned by AIDS

Purpose By 2010, an estimated 18.4 million children in Sub-Saharan Africa will be orphaned by AIDS. Research in South Africa…

Read more

Orphans of the AIDS Epidemic: An Examination of Clinical Level Problems of Children

Objective: The percentage of children with clinical levels of internalizing and externalizing problems before and after…

Read more

AIDS Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC): Problems, Responses, and Issues for Congress

Since HIV/AIDS was discovered in 1981, more than 20 million people have lost their lives to the virus. Over 40 million are…

Read more