Children as independent agents in financially strained households: A longitudinal and cross-cultural test of the family stress model
Poverty is an enduring public health concern that precipitates poor mental health. Yet despite ongoing efforts, the United Kingdom maintains high income inequality and poverty relative to European counterparts, with worse outcomes centralised in specific ethnic, cultural, and migrant communities. Efforts to alleviate the deleterious effects of poverty are typically individualised and focused on treating symptoms. Specific information outlining how peoples’ mental health is impacted by income-based deprivation will illuminate areas of intervention. However, dominant psychological theories are often at odds with people’s lived experiences, especially among young people. The family stress model proposes young people are indirectly impacted by household financial deprivation; whereby financial pressures contribute to elevated parental mental health disturbances that in turn impedes parenting practices. In contrast, qualitative data clearly demonstrates that children are often acutely aware of financial pressures within the household, and act to reduce pressures within a household. To advance this perspective, quantitative evidence will be extrapolated from multi-respondent and cross-cultural data.
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