The Connection between Parents’ Mental Health and Children’s Mental Balance

Your parents’ mental health plays an essential role in your psychological development.

Parents’ mental problems are closely linked to children’s poor mental and physical health.

If your parents have symptoms of depression and anxiety, you are more vulnerable to psychopathological dysfunction, problem behaviors or other serious disorders.

Link between Parental Psychiatric Disorders and Pathological Gambling in Adolescents

Recent studies show a link between parental mental disorders and pathological gaming in adolescents. Although games can be a way to relax and socialize, excessive use can negatively affect your mental health and cause conflict with parents.

Pathological gaming refers to excessive use of digital games, affecting social relationships and daily functions.

Adolescent pathological gambling is a global concern and has attracted the attention of researchers in psychology and cognitive sciences. Negative outcomes of pathological gaming create conflict in the family.

Adolescent problem gambling is one of the most important mental health issues today. Studies indicate that mental health factors such as aggression, self-control and ADHD are risk factors for pathological gambling. Aggression is closely linked to pathological gaming and excessive involvement in gaming can increase aggression. Adolescents with ADHD often have poor self-control, putting them at higher risk for pathological gaming. Self-control is an important mediator between psychosocial factors and pathological gaming.

Few studies have explored the relationships between adolescent pathological play and parental mental health using longitudinal data. The effects of parental depression and anxiety on adolescent pathological gambling, consistent with aggression, ADHD and self-control, are still under-researched.

Impact of Parental Depressive and Anxiety Disorders on Children’s Behavior and Emotional Development

Parents with depressive and anxiety disorders can pass on the negative effects to their children.

Goodman and Gotlib developed a model that explains the risks associated with children of depressed mothers, indicating that maternal depression can lead to abnormal development and psychopathological manifestations. Aktar and Bögels extended this model to include anxiety, showing that early and repeated exposure to parents’ negative affect has potential risks for children’s emotional and psychological development.

Depressed parents often experience negative affect, such as sadness, anger and guilt, which can lead children to acquire similar negative behaviors and states. Parental depression can lead to rejecting attitudes and limited parent-child interactions, hindering the development of self-control.

Anxious parents overreact to situations, showing excessive fear and worry, which negatively affects parent-child interaction. The lack of an optimal interpersonal environment will negatively affect children’s social-emotional development.

Pathological Gambling and Adolescent Mental Health

Online gaming is a top activity for teenagers, but pathological gaming is recognized as a global mental health problem. Pathological gaming is the lack of control in the excessive use of games despite physical or psychosocial problems. The pandemic has significantly increased the use of gaming by adolescents, worsening the severity of pathological gaming and associated mental health problems.

 

Mental Health Factors Impacting Pathological Gambling:

1. Aggressiveness and Pathological Games

Studies show that aggression is linked to pathological gaming. Adolescents who prefer violent games are more prone to excessive gaming. Aggressive gaming behavior is motivated by rewards, which can lead to pathological gaming.

2. Self-control and Adolescent Pathological Gambling

Self-control is the ability to control your emotions, cognition and behaviors. Studies show that factors related to self-control are negatively related to game use. Low self-control means that the teenager cannot resist the temptation to play games, which can lead to uncontrollable internet use.

3. ADHD and Adolescent Problem Gambling

ADHD is the most common mental disorder in school-age children, characterized by attention deficit, hyperactivity and impulsivity. Adolescents with ADHD are at high risk of pathological gaming due to a lack of self-control and a search for strong and novel stimuli in games. ADHD is associated with emotional problems such as depression and anxiety, and conduct problems.

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Exploring the effect of parental depression and anxiety on adolescents’ pathological play in the context of aggression, ADHD and self-control is essential for understanding and addressing this complex issue.

In order to identify the effect of parental depression and anxiety on their children’s pathological play, in line with psychic-related factors, some studies have explored the effects of parental depression and anxiety on adolescents’ risk of developing pathological play disorder, in line with aggression, ADHD and self-control, as illustrated below:

Conclusion

It is essential to maintain your mental health to create a positive environment for your child. Your mental problems not only affect you, but can also influence your child’s behavior and mental health. By addressing and treating your own mental health problems, you can prevent negative effects from being passed on and support your child’s healthy development.

Dr. Irina Săcuiu – Primary Psychiatrist, PhD in Medical Sciences

Contact us for an appointment or to discuss any other details or concerns you have that we can help you with:

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