Left too early: the effects of age at separation from parents on Chinese rural children's symptoms of anxiety and depression.
OBJECTIVE
We examined the effect of age at separation from parents on symptoms of anxiety and depression among children in rural communities in China whose parents migrated to cities in search of employment opportunities during the country's rapid economic development.


METHODS
Students in 3 rural areas, Anhui, Chongqing, and Guizhou (N = 592; age = 10-17 years), completed questionnaires that asked about symptoms of state and trait anxiety, as well as depression and age at separation from parents.


RESULTS
Children who were separated from parents at a younger age had more symptoms of anxiety and depression. This effect was especially pronounced for children who were separated from their mothers or from both parents.


CONCLUSIONS
China's explosive economic growth appears to exact a significant toll on left-behind children's mental health, particularly on children whose parents left early in their lives. The unintended consequences of the economic boom on child development need to be further examined in prospective studies.
Liu
Zhengkui
Z
Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing.
Li
Xinying
X
Ge
Xiaojia
X
D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D001007:Anxiety / Q000209:etiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008426:Maternal Deprivation; D010333:Paternal Deprivation; D012424:Rural Population; D014171:Transients and Migrants