Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Attach Hum Dev. 2009 Sep;11(5):445-70. doi: 10.1080/14616730903135993.
The underlying question of this study is whether childhood parental loss between infancy and sixth grade is a predictor of adult depression at age 26 years when a rating of loss severity is used. The loss rating considered the length of the separation/loss, the familiarity of substitute caregivers, the primary or supporting role of the lost parent figure, and traumatic features of the loss. The study also investigated the role of gender, developmental timing of the loss, life stress, SES, prior parental care and attachment history, and follow-up family relationships in the pathways between loss and depression. Results are reported from a prospective longitudinal study of children (N = 164) born into poverty. Measures were collected prenatally through age 26 years and included multiple methods and multiple reporters. Results indicated that the most robust predictor of adult depression was loss history between 5 years old and grade 2. Earlier and later measures of loss were not related to adult depression. However, intervening loss experiences predicted change in depression scores from childhood to adulthood. Loss continued to predict adult depression after controlling for SES, maternal life stress, participant life stress, gender, early caregiving, and follow up family functioning. This study found no significant gender differences. These results suggest that loss is a risk factor for adult depression for both boys and girls and that the quality of early and later caregiving do not entirely buffer children from the effects of parental loss.
本研究的根本问题是，当使用损失严重程度的评分时，婴儿期到六年级期间的儿童期父母丧失是否可以预测 26 岁时的成年抑郁。该损失评分考虑了分离/损失的持续时间、替代照顾者的熟悉程度、失去的父母形象的主要或辅助角色，以及损失的创伤特征。该研究还调查了性别、损失的发展时间、生活压力、社会经济地位、先前的父母照顾和依恋史以及后续家庭关系在损失和抑郁之间的作用途径。该研究报告了一项针对贫困儿童（N=164）的前瞻性纵向研究的结果。研究在产前到 26 岁期间进行了测量，包括多种方法和多个报告人。结果表明，最能预测成年抑郁的是 5 岁至 2 年级期间的丧失史。更早和更晚的丧失测量与成年抑郁无关。但是，干预性丧失经历可以预测从儿童期到成年期抑郁评分的变化。在控制社会经济地位、母亲生活压力、参与者生活压力、性别、早期照顾和后续家庭功能后，丧失仍然可以预测成年抑郁。本研究未发现显著的性别差异。这些结果表明，丧失是男孩和女孩成年抑郁的一个风险因素，而早期和后期照顾的质量并不能完全缓冲儿童免受父母丧失的影响。
