Parental migration and psychological well-being of children. Longitudinal evidence from Ghana

There is limited evidence on the time-varying effects of migration on the psychological well-being of children who stay behind in African contexts. This study is the first to employ panel data to examine this nexus in the context of Ghana. Data were collected in 2013, 2014, and 2015 from school-going children in the age group of 12-21 years. Using children’s self-reports, an analysis was conducted separately for boys (N=781) and girls (N=705). Results indicate that girls and boys with the mother away internally or internationally are equally or more likely to have higher levels of psychological well-being when compared to boys and girls of nonmigrants. Higher level of well-being is observed amongst girls when parents migrate and divorce. However, parental migration and divorce is more likely to increase the psychological vulnerability of boys. In Ghana, the psychological well-being of children is nuanced by which parent has migrated, marital status of migrant parent, and the gender of the child.

Parental Economic Migration and Children’s Outcomes in Romania: The Role of Social Support, Parenting Styles, and Patterns of Migration

Since the fall of communism, approximately 10%–15% of the Romanian population are estimated to have left the country in search of economic opportunities, resulting in a high number of children being left behind (i.e., children of migrant parent; CMP) in Romania. This study explored patterns of parental migration and frequency and correlates of mental health problems among CMP. A total of 889 adolescents, aged 13–18 years, with migrant parent(s) participated in the present study. Results showed a high prevalence of mental health problems, with dysthymia (51%) being the most common. As for parenting styles, “inconsistency” was found to increase the risk for depression and dysthymia. “Higher involvement” from parents significantly decreased the risk for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, panic, and substance abuse. The findings were discussed in terms of their clinical, training, and political implications.

Focus-Group Regarding the Psycho-Pedagogical Effects Felt by Children as a Result of the Parents’ Migration

The focus group method is a qualitative method which requires as technique the interview with a work group and a moderator. It is a research structure with scientific, social or public opinion commercial aim. In preparing the focus group I have determined the topic of the discussions based on an interviewing guide and I have determined the correspondence of the groups. Therefore, there had been five focus-groups, the discussions had a length of 75-90 min, recorded in an audio format, after receiving the subjects’ permission. There were 5 focus-groups: focus-group 1: parents that have experienced first-hand migration but have returned back (7 men and 3 women); focus-group 2: parents/grandparents of the children with a migrant parent, enrolled at a Step-by-step or After school program (7 women and 4 men); focus-group 3: primary school teachers, school counsellors of the students with at least one migrant parent (9 primary school teachers, 2 counsellors); focus-group 4: parents/grandparents that have in their care at least one child after the migration of the parent(s) abroad (3 men, 7 women or 4 parents and 6 grandparents); focus-group 5: 10 school counsellors (psychologists) of the schools from the surroundings of Hunedoara (including Calan town and Pestis, Teliuc and Ghelari villages). In conclusions, the migration of a parent brings negative effects over the psycho-pedagogical evolution of the kid; all followed indicators have had negative effects after the migration, with the exception of the one that speaks about life conditions. Whether they have or not passed through an experience of migration, all subjects have affirmed that the absence of a parent or both has repercussions over the normal development of the child.

The role of the imagination in transnational relating: The case of Nigerian children and their migrant parent in Ireland

This paper explores the role of imagination in the lives of Nigerian transnational children and their migrant parent in Ireland. Migration of a parent is a rupture in a child’s life that triggers imaginary processes that are real in their developmental consequences. Following Zittoun and Gillespie, imagination is a process that generates a disjunction from the person’s experience of the “real” world, and uncouples and loops out before it eventually comes back to the actual experience. For the left-behind child, this imaginative loop remains “open” as parents return becomes extended in time. The dilemmas for the migrant parent and child are explored.