Childhood loss of parent, lack of adequate parental care and adult depression: a replication.

A study of women living in Islington has confirmed earlier findings that the loss of a mother before the age of 17 (by death or separation) is associated with an increase in clinical depression in adulthood. Lack of adequate parental care following the loss accounted for the increase in disorder and there was some evidence that it acted as a 'vulnerability factor' increasing risk of onset of depression during a 1-year follow-up period, in the presence of a severe life event or major difficulty. Premarital pregnancy, marital separation/divorce and negative evaluation of self were identified as factors intervening between childhood lack of care and adult depression.