What Happens After Parental Neglect? Its Enduring Adverse Effect Through a Vicious Cycle Between Psychological Distress and Student Recognition

Abundant literature has documented the far-reaching adverse impacts of parental neglect on later intrapersonal and interpersonal outcomes. However, the existing research has been limited, neglecting to investigate its enduring effects on various development domains simultaneously. Based on the developmental cascade model, this study investigates the longitudinal associations among parental neglect, psychological distress, and student recognition using a three-wave longitudinal design with 310 secondary school students in Chengdu, China. The results revealed that parental neglect was consistently and significantly associated with subsequent changes in psychological distress and student recognition. Additionally, the findings suggested a vicious cycle between student recognition and psychological distress, initiated by parental neglect, with psychological distress playing a more pivotal role in the risk process. These findings highlight the enduring negative effects of parental neglect on adolescents' subsequent development through dynamic interactions across different development domains. In addition to primary and secondary prevention strategies to reduce adolescents' experiences of parental neglect, a renewed focus on later-stage interventions—especially those addressing psychological distress—is essential to breaking the vicious cycle.