ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: In China, there are approximately 70 million children, nearly 25% of the child population, who are left behind in the care of other family members when their parents migrate to urban areas, for increased economic opportunities. This paper presents a systematic review and a meta-analysis of studies that have examined the phenomenon of depression among these left-behind children (LBC). METHODS: Six hundred three papers published between 2000 and 2017 were retrieved from five databases (China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang, Weipu, PubMed, and Web of Science). RESULTS: Twenty-one studies (18 in Chinese and 3 in English) met the criteria for inclusion in this meta-analysis. The pooled estimate of depression among LBC was 26.4%. A significant heterogeneity has been found in reported findings, and this heterogeneity was associated with three types of study characteristics, including using an unclear definition of LBC and using invalidated depression instruments, and the geographic location. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of mental health problems among this large number of LBC suggests the need to quantify the extent and distribution of their mental health state. Implications for methodological improvements for future research have been discussed.
Subject(s)
Child, Abandoned/psychology , Depression/epidemiology , Parents/psychology , Child , Child, Abandoned/statistics & numerical data , China/epidemiology , Depression/psychology , Family/psychology , Humans , Transients and Migrants/psychologyABSTRACT
A majority of peer victimization research focuses on its associations with negative outcomes, yet efforts to understand possible protective factors that may mitigate these negative outcomes also require attention. The present study was an investigation of the potential moderating effect of prosocial behaviors on loneliness for youth who are peer victimized. Participants were fourth and fifth grade students (511 total; 49 % boys) who were primarily European American (43.4 %) and Hispanic (48.2 %). Structural Equation Modeling was used to test the interaction of prosocial behavior and peer victimization (relational and overt forms) on loneliness 1 year later. The results indicated that prosocial behavior significantly moderated the relationship between peer victimization (for the relational form only) and loneliness while controlling for levels of perceived peer support. A multi-group comparison by gender further indicated the moderation was significant for boys only. Potential implications for intervention/prevention efforts focused on developing children's prosocial skills as a possible protective factor for relationally victimized youth are discussed.
