He will never be able to stand on his own two feet: Developmental problems in families with schizophrenia patients from the parents' perspective

Background: From the perspective of developmental psychology, schizophrenia constitutes a serious developmental risk, since it obstructs a ,,normal" psychosocial development. Hardly any investigations up until now have focused on this important aspect. Aim: To investigate in an explorative study the developmental problems in families with an adult child with schizophrenia. Method: Parents of schizophrenia patients were interviewed within the scope of narrative interviews about their familial situations and their relationship to the patient. The data were selected and analysed following the guidelines of Grounded Theory and Thematic Field Analysis. Results: Patients with schizophrenia often remain dependent on their parents' emotional, practical and financial support. Typically, the parent-child-relation is re-intensified, often with a co-occurring loss of extra-familial social contacts. From a biographical point of view, schizophrenia is often connected with permanent parenthood and lifelong parental help. Discussion: Support offers for families should take into account illness-related developmental problems, especially problems regarding the difficult detachment of the patients from their parents.