Long-term effects of parental divorce timing on depression: A population-based longitudinal study

Background: We examined the long-term effects of parental divorce timing on depression using longitudinal data from the Korean Welfare Panel Study. Methods: Depression symptoms were measured using the 11 items of Center for Epidemiologic Scale for Depression (CES-D-11), and we categorized parental divorce timing into 'early childhood', 'adolescent' and 'none'. Results: Although participants who experienced parental divorce during adolescence exhibited a significantly higher CES-D-11 score (p =.0468), 'early childhood' participants displayed the most increased CES-D-11 score compared to the control group (p =.0007). Conversely, among participants who were unsatisfied with their marriage, those who experienced parental divorce in early childhood showed lower CES-D-11 scores, while 'adolescent period' participants exhibited significantly higher CES-D-11 scores (p =.0131). Conclusion: We concluded that timing of parental divorce exerts substantial yet varied effects on long-term depression symptoms and future marriage satisfaction.