The lingering legacy of being neglected in childhood: a hermeneutic phenomenological study of adults’ lived experiences of neglect as children
Carroll, Honor
(2020)
The lingering legacy of being neglected in childhood: a hermeneutic phenomenological study of adults’ lived experiences of neglect as children.
Doctor of Psychotherapy thesis, Dublin City University.
This study sought to uncover the experience of neglect through interviews with fifteen adults who were neglected as children. While neglect is the most prevalent form of reported child maltreatment in the world, there is a dearth of research and practice surrounding this concerning phenomenon from psychotherapy and related disciplines, and the voices of those who have experienced neglected have been underreported. Using hermeneutic phenomenological analysis, this study privileges the voices of those who were neglected in childhood, uncovering five common lived experiences from analysis of the interviews, namely, Being Unloved, Being Inferior, Seesawing, Soldiering and Yearning to Escape. Beyond these five experiences, this study reveals The Lingering Legacy of Neglect throughout the lifespan, unveiling the experience of neglect as a lifelong journey. In privileging the experience of each of the fifteen adult participants, this study contributes novel insights to the empirical literature and brings a unique understanding of the experience of childhood neglect to the practice and research of psychotherapy.