Premium
A psychoanalytic and qualitative research on immigrants' “left‐behind” children: “I understand why they left, but why did they leave?”
Author(s) -
Anagnostaki Lida,
Zaharia Alexandra
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
international journal of applied psychoanalytic studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.314
H-Index - 15
eISSN - 1556-9187
pISSN - 1742-3341
DOI - 10.1002/aps.1646
Subject(s) - psychoanalytic theory , psychodynamics , qualitative research , psychology , interpretative phenomenological analysis , narrative , psychic , meaning (existential) , developmental psychology , psychoanalysis , sociology , psychotherapist , medicine , social science , linguistics , philosophy , alternative medicine , pathology
Background and Purpose The psychoanalytic literature on migration has extensively explored the psychic impact of the migration process on the people who migrate, whereas the predicament of the immigrants' children that were left behind in the country of origin has been largely overlooked. This paper has a twofold aim. Firstly, it sets out to explore the experience of being left behind as a child by parents who emigrated to another country for economic reasons, and secondly, it aspires to present a valid combination of psychoanalytic thinking and qualitative design. Methods Fourteen adult men and women who as children were left behind in Greece when their parents emigrated were interviewed about their current perspectives on their childhood experiences. Their narratives were analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis, a qualitative research method that can offer material suitable for psychodynamic understanding. Results The analysis of the interviews yielded the overarching theme “Trauma” and four superordinate themes, “Intense emotions,” “Effects on parent–child relationship,” “Defenses,” and “Psychopathology.” The discussion of the results focuses on the psychoanalytic exploration of the trauma induced by the early and prolonged parent–child separation and its psychic sequelae. Conclusion Being left in the country of origin by parents who emigrated to another country for economic reasons was a traumatic experience for the “left‐behind” children. The complexities of this situation may be depicted through the combination of qualitative research methods and psychoanalytic understanding.