Trauma, Emotional Neglect, and Developmental Vulnerability in Children: Evidence from Albania

Background: Children in Albania and the wider Balkan region are often exposed to subtle yet persistent forms of emotional absence, parentification, and silencing. These relational harms are culturally normalized and rarely identified as neglect, but they create significant developmental vulnerabilities and increase the risk of exploitation, including trafficking. Methods: This qualitative study involved 30 participants, including 16 frontline professionals (psychologists, social workers, and legal staff) and 14 survivors of trafficking. Data were collected through semi-structured, trauma-informed interviews and focus groups between December 2024 and March 2025. Reflexive thematic analysis was applied to identify emotional and relational patterns contributing to vulnerability, with attention to cultural contexts and gendered dynamics. Results: Three interrelated themes were identified: (1) emotional absence: children adapt to caregivers’ physical presence but emotional unavailability, leading to self-effacement and diminished entitlement to care; (2) parentification: children assume emotional caregiving roles, often regulating parents’ wellbeing; and (3) silencing: emotional expression becomes equated with shame or punishment, producing long-term relational invisibility. Conclusions: Early relational harms describe developmental conditions that may heighten susceptibility. Prevention and intervention should integrate attachment-based family assessments, early childhood screening, trauma-informed training for professionals, and culturally adapted approaches to break cycles of invisible harm and strengthen children’s emotional safety.