“I lost my best friend too”: Exploring experiences of parental death in Black adolescents from low socio-economic backgrounds through interpretative phenomenological analysis

Literature exploring impacts of parental death on young people demonstrates profound effects both individually, and within the family system. Family roles and responsibilities may change for all, with potential additive impacts of socio-economic status (SES), but these are presently under-explored. The present study therefore aims to address this knowledge gap. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight Black adolescents aged 16-18 years, identified as having low SES. Data were analyzed verbatim using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Five themes were developed, each containing further subthemes: (1) They should be here, (2) The weight of grief, (3) Redefining family and finances, (4) Navigating external support and (5) Moving forward from loss. The findings demonstrate unique experiences and challenges faced by Black adolescents from low SES groupings following parental death, identifying both its profound emotional impacts and its wider systemic effects on familial roles, financial stability and access to supports.