The psychological impact of parental work migration on left-behind children in Romania: a literature review

Parental labour migration is a widespread phenomenon in developing countries across Central and Eastern Europe and may impact the emotional security of Left-Behind Children (LBC) due to prolonged separation from primary attachment figures. In Romania, official data estimate that nearly 58,000 children have parents working abroad. Parental migration has both positive and negative effects on children's development. This review examines the scope of the phenomenon and its psychological impact on Romanian children. A literature search was conducted across Web of Science, PubMed, SAGE, ScienceDirect, ProQuest, and Google Scholar for studies published between 2007 and 2024. Fourteen studies were included, highlighting psychological effects of parental migration on children's mental health and parent-child relationships. The findings are discussed through the lens of attachment theory. Further research is needed to understand the long-term consequences of such separations. The findings are relevant not only to researchers but also to institutions seeking to develop policies aimed at reducing parental labour migration or mitigating its negative impact on LBC.