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what is the research gap? Introduction Research on childhood…
what is the research gap?
Introduction
Research on childhood trauma has gained traction in the field of psychology. Efforts have been made to identify both the independent and dependent variables of childhood trauma and its consequences in the later stages of adulthood. For context, the Diagnostic Statistical Manual on Mental Disorders IV (DSMD-IV) defines childhood trauma as a direct exposure to trauma, either by witnessing or learning about a negative traumatic experience of a close friend or relative. De Bellis & Zisk (2014) stipulates that childhood trauma can occur due to bullying, accidents, terrorism, and emotional and physical abuse. However, a less discussed form of trauma is childhood parental loss. Therefore, this research will focus on analyzing the psychological effects of parental loss during childhood both from an immediate and chronic point of view.
Research Questions
Children are the most vulnerable, dependent on their caregivers for basic and psychosocial human support. Therefore, the loss of a child negatively affects their social and health outcomes. In today’s developed countries, the percentage of children who face parental death has decreased compared to the nineteenth century. However, at least 4% of children in developed are bereaved of a parent before 18 years of age. This is still a significant figure that warrants investigation; especially still it might be higher in developing countries. Therefore, the research questions of this study will be as follows.
What is the coping mechanism that children adopt to deal with parental loss?
How does the loss of a parent affect children?
Addressing this research question will provide information to therapists and psychologists in their practice when dealing with children and adults. Furthermore, it will help in dispelling the taboo of the topic of parental loss.
Literature Review
Before narrowing down to the impact of the traumatic loss of a parent, there is a need to investigate how early life experiences affect adult perception. Correa (2018) examined the short- and long-term effects of pain and stress in adult pathologies. Some of the adult conditions that have been linked to neurodevelopmental stress include anxiety, depression, and Alzheimer’s disease. Particularly, four main peripheral and nociceptive pathways are affected by childhood trauma. This includes inflammation, neuroplasticity, cell death, and injury leading to pain. This article provides insight into how pain in early life can alter the function and structure of a developing brain.
Bellis & Zisk (2014) also contribute to this topic by investigating the effect of interpersonal, intentional, and chronic trauma on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), depression, anxiety, and antisocial behaviors. Exposure to a traumatic event, such as parental loss, when not well processed, can activate the body’s stress response systems, which may increase the cortisol levels by fear transmission to the prefrontal cortex, hypothalamus, and hippocampus, increasing activity in the sympathetic nervous system. These actions are also influenced by the gene environment and can easily alter the body’s ability to regulate stress. Furthermore, cross-sectional research studies and brain imaging studies of children who have trauma histories have reported altered biomarkers.
In his paper, Palombo (1981) examined the loss of a parent during childhood as a source of childhood trauma and the outcomes of such an experience both in the long and short term. The death of a parent can be considered a traumatic event because it involves a sudden and overwhelming loss, which feelings of fear, confusion, and a sense of destabilization can accompany. From a psychoanalytical approach, children process death as the loss of a loved object, which results in feelings of sadness and grief. Parental death can also be considered a narcissistic injury since it destabilizes the child’s sense of security and attachment. Children often tie their identity to their parents. Therefore, the loss of a parent can disrupt the child’s ego and sense of identity, negatively affecting their self-esteem. In the long term, Palombo stipulates that the death of a parent can trigger PTSD, anxiety, trust, attachment, and difficulty in maintaining future relationships.
Therefore, Palombo (1981) stipulates that individual or group therapy is effective in dealing with the long-term effect of parental death. In his work, Berg (1978) states that psychologists have a role in challenging a taboo around discussing death, especially around children. Berg adopted group counseling to help children accept death and dying. Berg believes that group counseling creates a safe and relatable environment where children can share their thoughts and feeling, develop coping skills and process their emotions on death and dying.
Source Assessment
The research by Berg (1978) is relevant to this topic as it directly contributes to the second research question. Constance Berg was a therapist and director for elementary guidance for Northwest Community schools in Illinois. This source does explain any research method, and the paper is more of an opinion, which makes it lose its objectivity. However, this source is still instrumental in contributing to information about group therapy.
The article by Palombo (1981) was written when the author was the director of the Barr-Harris center for the study of separation during childhood. While the paper has two main research questions, there is no review of the literature nor state of research methods, which reduces the paper’s objectivity. Nevertheless, the author makes persuasive arguments contributing to this research topic and concludes that therapy is essential to children dealing with parental loss.
The article by Correa (2018) is critical to answering the research question on the pathological effect of traumatic early life experiences. The authors have good academic and medical credentials affiliated with tertiary research associations. The article adopts an integrative literature review, which reiterates its objectivity. The article is highly persuasive and uses an authoritative tone.
The manuscript by De Bellis &Abigail (2014) contributes to the first research question by providing information on the biological effects of childhood trauma. By using objectively uses peer-reviewed literature and animal model to explore the topic. The authors are professors in the field of psychiatry, which assures their strong credentials.
Source Analysis
The works of Berg (1978) take on a descriptive approach to assert the importance of group therapy in helping children understand and process death. The main weakness is that it takes a subjective approach with no specific methodology and is not peer-reviewed. This may reduce its authority in contributing to evidence practice. The paper by Correa (2018) is a systematic peer-reviewed paper that uses a literature review methodology. The main strength of the paper is its reliance on peer-reviewed papers and clinical studies to explore the topic. The article paper by Pambolo (1981) explores the psychoanalytical paradigms of parental loss as trauma. The main strength of the paper is that it explores the different conceptual frameworks related to traumatic parental loss. However, the article takes a subjective approach to exploring the different concepts, which is a major weakness. The article by Bellis &Abigail (2014) reviews the literature on the neurobiological effects of childhood trauma. Its focus on childhood trauma and the practical applications of the research are the main strengths. However, the main weakness is the limited data, and lack of original research is weakness.
Childhood trauma is an important and often understudied area in psychology. However, an underexplored topic is the traumatic effects of parental loss on the child both in the short and long term. Therefore, relying on information from academic and peer-reviewed topics, the project will explore the loss of parents as a source of trauma to children, highlight the consequences and give recommendations on based psychological practices to address the problem.
Children are vulnerable and dependent on their caregivers for basic and psychosocial human support. Therefore, the loss of a caregiver affects their overall social and health outcomes. Current research shows that the percentage of children who face parental loss has decreased compared to the nineteenth century. However, at least 4% of children in developed countries are bereaved of a parent before 18 years of age which may have a long-lasting negative impact on their lives. This is still a significant figure that should be investigated to obtain a clear picture of childhood trauma and its impact on adulthood. The research questions of the research will be: What is the coping mechanism that children adopt to deal with parental loss? And how does the loss of a parent affect children 0-18 years old?
From a psychological perspective, childhood trauma occurs when a child undergoes a traumatic experience that threatens their emotional and physical well-being. The experience may negatively influence their adulthood in terms of physiological and psychological well-being. When a child undergoes trauma he or she may develop emotional upset, depression, anxiety, and behavioral changes (Cohen et al., 2016). Traumatic experiences affect the well-being of the human mind and behavior which are the key elements in the psychology field. This means that the childhood trauma topic fits in psychology field as it will help understand the influence of childhood trauma on their mind and behavioral well-being.
Investigation of the effects of early life experiences is essential as it will lay a better understanding of childhood trauma as the topic of this research. Adhvaryu et al (2019) in their study show that psychological well-being in adulthood is greatly influenced by early life experiences. As noted by Adhvaryu and his colleagues, it is clear that many life stressors are found to harm psychological well-being in adulthood. This means if a child went through a hard or stressful experience may have a direct impact on his or her behavior during the later stages of life. Hardships like poverty during the early life of a person influence the behavior and personality in adulthood which seems to affect most children from low-income families. This is because children from poor families have limited income soothing and coping mechanisms.
Childhood trauma as one of the early childhood experiences has a negative impact on the later stages of life. The loss of a parent or caregiver is painful and causes trauma which influences adult pathologies as examined by Correa (2018). Some of the adult conditions that have been linked to neurodevelopmental stress include anxiety, depression, and Alzheimer’s disease. The pain during early life affects brain development and its well-being in adulthood which in turn affects behavior and personality. The research provides better insight into the connection between the pain of parental loss and childhood trauma and the overall impact on adulthood. Children who have a history of losing someone close such as a parent are likely to suffer from recurring anxiety, depression, and other mental health disorders if the proper care is not delivered early enough.
Another study conducted by Bellis & Zisk (2014) shows the effects of interpersonal, intentional, and chronic trauma on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), depression, anxiety, and antisocial behaviors. The research provides information on the biological perspective of childhood trauma and its effects on later stages of life. As pointed out by the authors, exposure to traumatic events activates the body’s stress response systems increasing the cortisol levels by fear transmission to the prefrontal cortex, hypothalamus, and hippocampus. This is found to increase sympathetic system activities affecting the behavior and personality of a person. This shows that traumatic experiences from various events such as parental loss have a great influence on the development and stability of the brain.
Palombo (1981) in his research examined and found that losing a parent is a major cause of childhood trauma which also has a great influence on adulthood. According to the study, the death of a parent is a major source of childhood trauma since a child is exposed to the sudden loss of their loved one such as a parent or caregiver who was ensuring his or her safety and provision. When a parent suddenly leaves, the child is exposed to a great loss of support and attachment which leads to loneliness. This also exposes children to different hardships which include poverty which in turn, forces them to mature before their time. This means that children are forced to be responsible for lives and survive without their parents or caregivers. This is stressful and unbearable, especially for very young children who are not able to provide for their needs. Palombo (1981) suggests that parental loss may disrupt the ego of a child which in turn affects self-esteem which may be manifested even in adulthood. This suggests that people with low self-esteem are likely to have been exposed to a traumatic experience during their early life stages. Traumatic experiences also affect people’s ability to maintain future relationships since they may lack knowledge and experience on how to well-relate with others.
Dealing with the long-term effects of childhood trauma caused by the death of a parent or caregiver has been given less attention and few studies have been conducted. For example, the study by Palombo (1981), suggests that individual or group therapy is effective in dealing with the long-term effect of parental death. This is where children who have lost their loved ones undergo therapy to help them overcome bereavement to avoid later life negative effects. Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is another mechanism that can be used to ensure children are protected from childhood trauma and its effects in adulthood as outlined by Vanderzee et al (2019) in the information derived from the study carried out by Cohen et al (2016). Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is an evidence-based and manualized treatment suitable for children aged three and eighteen years with post-traumatic stress symptoms related to any type of traumatic event such as parental loss. The authors found intervention effective in children between the ages of three to five. This means that the intervention can be used as one way to treat childhood trauma and protect children from post-childhood trauma effects in later stages of life.
Berg (1978) in his research shows that including children in death discussions can be used to protect them from childhood trauma due to bereavement. This is because when children are included in group discussions, they will be able to learn about death and how to overcome sadness and grief in case a loved one dies when they are still young. The author provides insight into the importance of including death discussions in education as one way to equip children with the knowledge and strength to overcome traumatic experiences caused by parental death. This is an important research on this topic as it provides answers to the research question of how children can deal with parental loss to prevent trauma which may also influence their behavior and personality in adulthood. Helping children deal with traumatic experiences will promote their mental and behavioral wellness even in adulthood.
From the research done it is evident that most studies focus on the effects of parental loss on children and their later life stages. But less is done on the mechanism that children can adopt to effectively deal with parental loss to prevent traumatic experiences. Therefore, the research will be necessary as it will provide information on how children can deal with the parental loss for their wellness in both childhood and adulthood. The research will provide information to therapists and psychologists that can be used in their practice when dealing with children and adults. This means that the techniques and practices used to help children overcome childhood trauma will be more effective. Furthermore, it will help in dispelling the taboo of the topic of parental loss.
Methodology, Design, and Data
For my research question, I have chosen to use a Qualitative Method with a Case Study Design. Qualitative research is beneficial for this proposal because it will allow me to deeply explore the topics of parental loss and the coping mechanisms adopted by children. In addition, a case study design will focus on a single participant or a small group. This design is best for this research because it allows me to observe closely and gain detailed information from the participant. Moreover, it will help revise any information change and easily include it in the analysis. A case study will provide insight into further research if needed. Furthermore, it allows for any investigation if an unethical issue arises; therefore, I can be corrected. It is also easy to remember critical details, assisting in decision-making, judgment, critical analysis, and action.
Rashid et al. (2019) state that qualitative research and case study design are highly flexible and adaptable. This allows researchers to modify the scope of the study or include new participants as needed. Furthermore, the case study design is useful since it allows researchers to understand the issue and change their research methodology accordingly. Additionally, both help to a thorough comprehension of the subject. Researchers must study how children cope with parental loss to better comprehend the individual’s condition and how the loss affects them. However, the proposed study has considerable limitations.
Qualitative research and case study design can be time-consuming. This is especially true when examining parental loss and children’s coping techniques since it necessitates researchers delving deeper into the individual’s circumstances to understand the problem better. Furthermore, they are restricted in their generalizability since the results are frequently peculiar to the individual or group being researched. This might be constricting since the results may only apply to a small group. This methodology can also pose ethical concerns, requiring researchers to delve into sensitive topics and better understand the individual’s circumstances (Taquette et al., 2022). Since individuals might be dealing with traumatic events, this can be a major concern.
The study will also examine parental loss’s consequences on adult conduct and personality. This is significant because the data will light on childhood trauma’s long-term impacts. This will be accomplished by investigating the association between children’s coping techniques for dealing with parental loss and their adult conduct and personality. Furthermore, the study will examine how sorrow impacts adults’ psychological well-being. The findings of this study will help therapists and psychologists better understand the impact of childhood trauma and how to treat it successfully.
The type of measurement that will be used is semi-structured interviews. Semi-structured interviews are qualitative research that will allow detailed information from the participants, allowing me to obtain detailed information and some freedom to explore other topics (Ahlin, 2019). This will benefit this research because it allows me to have open-ended conversations with the participant to understand the topics better. Validity and reliability will be determined through member checking when the researcher returns to the participant to confirm the accuracy of their responses and findings. This will ensure that the data collected is accurate and that any changes made are valid. Some examples of the interviews questions will be as followed: What is your name? What was your relationship like with your parent that passed away? How have you been feeling since the loss of your parent? Have you been going to therapy to deal with your emotions? What do you think your life will be like without this parent? Can you provide me with what a day looks like for you? Give an example of how your emotions caused conflict for you since the loss of your parent.
This study’s participants will be children aged 15 to 18 who have experienced parental loss. This research will have a limited sample size, with a maximum of 10 participants. The participants will be chosen using purposive sampling, which means they will be chosen based on their experience with parental loss. This ensures that the participants in the research have suffered parental loss and may give insight into their coping processes (Alem, 2020). In addition, participants will be recruited from various sources, including schools, counseling services, and community organizations. This will enable a more diversified sample of participants, allowing for a complete knowledge of the coping techniques used by children.
The data analysis will involve everything taken from the semi-structured interviews and observations. I will examine the participant’s behavior, emotions, and responses to understand how parental loss affects children. I will also be looking at the coping mechanisms adopted by the participants to help them manage their emotions. The data collected from the interviews and observations will be transcribed and transformed for analysis, and advanced software will be used to analyze the data. This research will help better understand how parental loss affects children and what coping mechanisms they adopt to manage their emotions.
The participants in this study will be children ages 15-18 years. Old that have lost a parent. Finding participants for this kind of category could be tricky to find. Hospitals, schools, and community centers are good areas to find participants. Participants in this study are completely voluntary. Therefore, to seek participants, an ad will be posted in these places with the details of the study, and consent will be needed.
I will examine the participant’s behavior, emotions, and responses to understand how parental loss affects children. I will also look at the coping methods that individuals use to assist them in controlling their emotions. The interview and observation data will be transcribed and converted before being analyzed using specialized technologies. This study will contribute to a better understanding of how parental bereavement impacts children and the coping methods they use to regulate their emotions. To ensure the validity and reliability of the data collected for this research project, valid and reliable data-collection tools have been selected; these include semi-structured interviews and observations. Semi-structured interviews allow for open-ended conversations with the participant to understand the topics better. Observations allow observing the participant’s behavior, emotions, and responses.
This study’s population will include children aged 15 to 18 who have lost a parent. Various strategies will be utilized to determine an appropriate sample size for this investigation. They include distributing fliers and posters to hospitals, schools, and community organizations to promote the study. Furthermore, online channels such as social media will also be used to reach a broader audience, especially those in faraway places. Many ethical concerns will be included in the data collection procedure for this study. Before taking part in the study, all individuals must provide informed permission. All volunteers will be thoroughly vetted to ensure they understand the study’s risks and benefits. Moreover, all participant data will be kept anonymous, with only the study team having access to it.
The information gathered from semi-structured interviews and observations will be utilized to provide a complete study of the consequences of parental loss on children. The information will be transcribed and converted before being analyzed (Simoni et al., 2019). The data obtained will be analyzed using advanced software, and the results will be utilized to understand better the coping methods employed by children to deal with the death of a parent.
Once the data collection and analysis process is complete, statistical or qualitative analysis processes will be used to analyze the data. For the qualitative analysis, a thematic analysis will be used to examine the data collected from the semi-structured interviews and observations. The thematic analysis will allow me to identify any patterns or themes within the data. Additionally, the data will be coded and organized into categories to explore the findings further. A peer review process will be used to ensure the reliability of the qualitative analysis. This process will involve having another researcher review the data and the results to ensure the analysis is valid and reliable.
The research has limitations and assumptions. For example, the sample size of the research is limited to children aged 15 to 18. Also, the researcher’s and participants’ prejudices impact the research. As a result, it is vital to keep these biases in mind while reviewing data. Furthermore, the data received from participants is subject to the accuracy of their responses since some participants may not offer correct information. As a result, the findings of this research must be disseminated to all relevant stakeholders and interested parties.
As a report, the results and findings will be presented to the key stakeholders, including mental health experts, trauma advocates, adults, and children. In addition, an overview of the study methodology, the findings, and any suggestions based on the findings will be included in the report. The findings will also be presented at conferences, published in journals, and disseminated on social media to reach a wider audience and ensure that every stakeholder is well-informed.
Ethical Considerations
With any research there are ethical implications we all have to consider. This study’s participants will be children aged 15 to 18 who have experienced parental loss. This research will have a limited sample size, with a maximum of 10 participants. The participants will be chosen using purposive sampling, which means they will be chosen based on their experience with parental loss. Since my final project is working with children some ethical considerations are: 1. informed consent, Minors and their parents must give informed consent before participating in any research 2. Confidentiality, It is important that the researcher remains confidential and does not let anyone know who is not involved in the study know what is going on. 3. Respecting boundaries, if the child says they need a break or to pick this up another time it is important to respect what they say and listen because it could be a lot for the child to handle all at once.
When working with children in research, one must not forget to take into account the hazards that could be brought about by the research. The researcher has a responsibility to be aware of any potential dangers and to take measures to reduce or eliminate those risks. For instance, the researcher is responsible for being aware of any potential psychological hazards and taking the necessary precautions to assure the participants’ safety during the experiment. Also, the researcher needs to take into account the ethical norms that are followed in order to conduct ethical research. These criteria include things like having the participant’s informed consent, maintaining confidentiality, respecting boundaries, and taking into account diversity. These principles must be adhered to very closely in order to guarantee that the research will be carried out in an ethical manner. In general, a researcher must take into consideration the ethical consequences of their work before beginning any kind of research involving children. The researcher is responsible for being familiar with the ethical rules and taking the necessary procedures to guarantee that the research is carried out in an ethical manner. In addition to this, they must be ready to address any potential ethical issues that may come up and provide further resources or help if it is required.
Conclusion
The literature gathered from various sources shows that childhood trauma is a major problem that affects people even in their adulthood. Psychological well-being in adulthood is greatly influenced by early life experiences and therefore if childhood trauma is not effectively addressed it will affect the adulthood well-being of an individual. Childhood trauma can also be perceived biologically due to its influence on human brain development. This shows that the stability of the brain during childhood will determine the health and wellness of the human brain in adulthood. Loss of a parent or close relative is among the major causes of childhood trauma. This is because children find it hard to accept the deaths of their loved ones and this may affect them in one way or another. Various studies show different traumatic effects and their consequences in adulthood. The information gathered from different sources will be applied to the research on childhood trauma and how children can deal with it for their wellness. Some sources provide direct answers to the research questions and therefore using them in this research will improve its accuracy and reliability. The project will explore the loss of parents as a source of trauma to children, highlight the consequences and give recommendations on based psychological practices to address the problem. This means that the project will have utilized sources with information that suits its topic making it significant.
