Abstract
Background: The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between parental illness and life satisfaction among Danish adolescents and the potential modifying effect of positive school experiences. Moreover, we describe the use of student counsellor services among adolescents with and without ill parents. Methods: Data included 9565 adolescents primarily aged 13–19 years, who participated in the cross-sectional Well-being Despite Study. Multilevel logistic regression models including joint effect analyses were performed. Results: Parental illness was strongly associated with life satisfaction. Negative school experiences were more frequent among adolescents with ill parents and strongly associated with low life satisfaction for all students. However, joint effect analyses did not show effect modification by school-related variables. The odds ratio of having talked to a student counsellor was highest for adolescents with multiple ill parents, compared to no ill parents. Conclusions: Parental illness is a strong predictor of low life satisfaction among adolescents; the impact depends on number of ill parents, whether parental illness is physical or mental, and their level of impairment. Positive school experiences were less frequent in adolescents of ill parents and did not counteract the effect of parental illness on life satisfaction.
Highlights
The prevalence of children having a parent with a chronic or serious physical illness vary between studies and methods used to estimate the prevalences
This association was found among adolescent across the parental illness categories, suggesting that positive school experiences operate as promotive factors enhancing life satisfaction for all students
This study demonstrates a strong association between parental illness and life satisfaction
Summary
The prevalence of children having a parent with a chronic or serious physical illness vary between studies and methods used to estimate the prevalences. Estimated that 4.1% of 4–18-year-olds in Germany had a parent with a serious physical illness [1]. When a parent becomes ill, the whole family is affected. Parental illness has been associated with lower grade point average (GPA), higher risk of low educational achievement, and attenuated income in adulthood [9–12]. These consequences of parental illness may be a result of the role reversal, reduced parental capacity, and lack of parental attention, which has been found to be common consequences and coping-mechanisms in families facing parental illness [13–16]
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