Effects of a Child's Death on the Marital Relationship: A Review

Abstract

A review of the clinical and empirical literature suggests that the grief of parents who have lost a child is especially intense, enduring, and taxing on numerous levels. Bereaved parents have been found to suffer multitudinous negative mental and physical health sequelae, as well as secondary losses, The deterioration of the marital relationship may be among these negative outcomes. This review focuses on the effects of a child's death on couple functioning in general, and on specific facets of the marital relationship. Research on variables that may affect the relationship between parental bereavement and marital outcome is explored. Various existing hypotheses for the potentially deleterious impact of a child's death on couples are also reviewed, and a new paradigm for understanding these effects is suggested.