Loss of a parent by death: determining student impact

Abstract

Background. The death of a parent may have a profound negative impact on student’s academic achievement, as a parent plays a large role in most children’s academic development. Purpose. The purpose of this research was to better determine what types of struggles a student faces following the loss of a parent by death. Methods and Results. Previous research was analyzed to help determine what manifestations are more significant following parental death. Results indicate the following: academic achievement is not researched enough to state whether it is specifically impacted by parental loss through death, elementary and secondary age groups are the most academically impacted, a child’s developmental level contributes to their reaction to parental death, a student’s emotional well-being is the most commonly researched manifestation, and University faculty are the most common publishers of this topic from previous research. Conclusions. Further research regarding the impact of a parental death on students is recommended.