Intergenerational Pathways to Mental Health

Mental health problems often develop within a family and social context, and their effects may extend from one generation to another. Parental mental health problems, adverse childhood experiences, family violence, substance use, socioeconomic hardship, and disrupted family relationships can influence mental health outcomes in subsequent generations. At the same time, intergenerational transmission is not inevitable. Positive parenting, stable and supportive relationships, social support, access to mental health care, and other protective factors may reduce risk and contribute to better outcomes. Although interest in intergenerational mental health has grown considerably, important questions remain about how these influences interact at different stages of life and across different social and cultural settings. Important questions remain about how these processes operate within different family relationships, how they vary across cultural and socioeconomic contexts, and which factors can be modified through prevention, services, and public policy.

Considering these points, the goal of this Research Topic is to improve understanding of how mental health risks and protective processes are transmitted, reinforced, or interrupted across generations. Moving beyond the traditional focus on parent–child transmission, this collection aims to adopts a broader family and life-course perspective, considering relationships between parents and children, grandparents and grandchildren, siblings, and extended family members.

This collection welcomes interdisciplinary research examining how family relationships interact with social, cultural, economic, migratory, and increasing digital environments in shaping mental health. There is a particular interest on factors that may be modified through prevention, clinical practice, family and community interventions, mental health services, or public policy. In addition, the collection also aims to examine why some individuals and families maintain or regain mental wellbeing despite adversity. Research from different cultural and socioeconomic settings, including international comparative studies and underrepresented populations, is encouraged. Ultimately, the collection seeks to identify pathways that may help reduce intergenerational vulnerability and promote better mental health outcomes across the life course.

Suitable themes for manuscripts include, but are not limited to:

 Intergenerational transmission of depression, anxiety, trauma, resilience, and coping behaviors;

 Mental health within family relationships across generations, including parent–child, grandparent–grandchild, sibling, and extended-family relationships;

 Parenting and parental wellbeing as determinants of child mental health;

 Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and their mental health consequences from childhood through adulthood;

 Social media and digital environments as factors influencing the mental health and relationships of multiple generations;

 Migration, family separation, and their impact on mental health across generations;

 Social inequalities and intergenerational cycles of mental health vulnerability;

 Family- and community-based interventions to promote mental health across generations;

 Family-oriented public policies and their role in promoting mental health and preventing intergenerational vulnerability;

 Cultural differences and international comparisons in intergenerational mental health.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review

Keywords: intergenerational mental health, family transmission, parenting, adverse childhood experiences, resilience, family relationships, mental health risk factors

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.