Migrant parents and psychosocial effects of parents’ absence on children left behind in the Kyrgyz Republic

ABSTRACT This study was conducted to investigate the psychosocial effects of parents’ absence on children left behind in the Kyrgyz Republic (Kyrgyzstan). A survey was conducted in 2018 with a sample of 457 secondary school children aged 11–18-years-old in the Kyrgyz Republic. The results of multiple linear regression analysis showed that the psychological well-being of children was not significantly influenced when their parents were not divorced but did live separately. However, children with parents who lived abroad and were divorced did show a significant increase in their psychological distress when compared to children who lived with both parents. Furthermore, children whose father was away and who were cared for by their mother only, were more likely to experience a lower level of psychological well-being than children who lived with both parents. Additionally, no significant effect on the well-being of children whose mothers or both parents had migrated was found.