the impact of parentification on children's psychological adjustment

136 Pages·2005·13.52 MB·English

THE IMPACT OF PARENTIFICATION ON CHILDREN’S PSYCHOLOGICAL
ADJUSTMENT: EMOTION MANAGEMENT SKILLS AS POTENTIAL UNDERLYING
PROCESSES
by
MONICA MARIE FITZGERALD
(Under the Direction of Kimberly L. Shipman)
ABSTRACT
This study investigated the impact of parentification on children’s psychological
adjustment and emotional development in a community sample of 52 mother-child dyads. The
primary focus was on the impact of emotional parentification (EP), which involves parents
seeking emotional support, caregiving, and advice from their children. Mothers and children
completed questionnaires and were interviewed. Findings indicated that EP predicted greater
child internalizing problems (i.e., depression, anxiety) as well as both deficits and strengths in
emotional understanding skills (i.e., difficulties identifying own emotions, greater awareness of
sadness in self and mothers), and deficits in emotion regulation skills (i.e., expressive reluctance,
emotion dysregulation). Although EP predicted children’s deficits in emotional understanding
and emotion regulation, these variables failed to explain the relation found between EP and child
internalizing problems. Findings are discussed from a developmental psychopathology approach,
emphasizing the importance of parental socialization of emotion in children’s psychological
development.
INDEX WORDS: Parentification, Mother-daughter relationship, Emotional
development, Emotional understanding, Emotion regulation
THE IMPACT OF PARENTIFICATION ON CHILDREN’S PSYCHOLOGICAL
ADJUSTMENT: EMOTION MANAGEMENT SKILLS AS POTENTIAL UNDERLYING
PROCESSES
by
MONICA MARIE FITZGERALD
B.A., Tulane University, 1994
M.S., University of Georgia, 2002
A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Georgia in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
ATHENS, GEORGIA
2005
© 2005
Monica M. Fitzgerald
All Rights Reserved
THE IMPACT OF PARENTIFICATION ON CHILDREN’S PSYCHOLOGICAL
ADJUSTMENT: EMOTION MANAGEMENT SKILLS AS POTENTIAL UNDERLYING
PROCESSES
by
MONICA MARIE FITZGERALD
Major Professor: Kimberly Shipman
Committee: Joan Jackson
Steven Beach
Electronic Version Approved:
Maureen Grasso
Dean of the Graduate School
The University of Georgia
August 2005
iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to extend my gratitude and appreciation to several important people who
have supported me throughout this process. First, I would like to thank my mentors Kimberly
Shipman and Joan Jackson for wholeheartedly supporting my independent research interests and
academic pursuits, and for providing a stimulating, collaborative approach to mentorship
throughout my training at the University of Georgia. In particular, I thank them for their
availability and unstinting guidance along the way. I also want to extend thanks to my colleagues
and friends at the University of Georgia for sharing ideas, enthusiasm, and support as invaluable
team members. I also thank my close friends near and far who have encouraged and nurtured me
from start to finish. I am appreciative and thankful of the financial support provided through the
University of Georgia Dean's Award, which made this project feasible, and I would like to thank
my committee members for their time and thoughtful feedback. I also thank my conscientious
and skilled research assistants. I extend deep appreciation to my husband, Kevin, who has
provided me with inspiration, support, and laughter throughout this process. Finally, I would like
to thank my parents, Ardell and Michael Fitzgerald, for instilling in me the faith, confidence, and
determination necessary to achieve my professional and personal goals. Not to be forgotten is the
acknowledgement of the mothers and daughters who participated in this project, for they have
allowed us to gain a better understanding of their relationships and life experiences.
v
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...............................................................................................iv
LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................vii
CHAPTER
1 THE IMPACT OF PARENTIFICATION ON CHILDREN’S PSYCHOLOGICAL
ADJUSTMENT: EMOTION MANAGEMENT SKILLS AS POTENTIAL
UNDERLYING PROCESSES…………………………………………………...1
Parentification Defined…………………………………………………….3
Parentification: Adaptive or Pathological?...................................................5
The Impact of Parentification on Child and Adult Psychological
Adjustment...................................................................................................7
Parentification and Parental Illness and Psychopathology………………..7
Parentification and Divorce………………………………………………10
Parentification and Child Abuse………………………………………….12
Additional Research on Parentification…………………………….…….13
Summary of Parentification Research ...…………………………………18
Conceptual Issues and Definitional Limitations………………………….19
Parentification and Children’s Emotion Management Skills…………….20
Cultural Considerations…………………………………………………..26
vi
The Present Study………………………………………………………...27
Hypotheses……..………………………………………………………...28
2 METHOD………………………………………………………………............30
Participants……………………………………………………………….30
Statistical Power………………………………………………………….31
Measures………………………………………………………………….32
Procedure………………………………………………………………....39
3 RESULTS……………………………………………………………………...42
Data Analysis Related to Hypotheses…………………………………….42
Parentification and Child Psychological Adjustment…………………….43
Parentification and Children’s Emotion Management Skills……………..44
Mediational Analyses…………………………………………………….47
4 DISCUSSION…………………………………………………………………...54
Parentification and Child Psychological Adjustment……………………54
Emotional Parentification and Children’s Emotion Management Skills…58
Mediation………………………………………………………………...64
Limitations and Future Research Directions……………………………..65
Implications for Intervention……………………………………………..67
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………...69
APPENDIX A……………………………………………………………………………87
APPENDIX B…………………………………………………………………………...112
vii
LIST OF TABLES
Table
Table 1: List of Study Measures Per Construct.............................................................................40
Table 2: Descriptive Statistics and Values of Coefficient Alpha for Scale Scores.......................51
Table 3: Intercorrelations for All Study Variables………………………………………………52
1
CHAPTER 1
The Impact of Parentification on Children’s Psychological Adjustment: Emotion Management
Skills as Potential Underlying Processes
Parentification is the process by which a child or adolescent prematurely fulfills parental
roles and assumes responsibility for the physical and/or emotional needs of other family
members (Chase, 1999; Jurkovic, 1997). Within the context of parentification, children’s
contributions to the family often are developmentally inappropriate, unacknowledged, and taxing
on their capabilities (Chase, 1999, 2001; Jurkovic, 1997). Research documents a link between
parentification and a number of adverse short-term and long-term psychosocial consequences for
children and adults (e.g., depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, impaired academic performance,
somatic/health problems, and interpersonal difficulties; Earley & Cushway, 2002; Jurkovic,
1997, 1998). Clinical literature suggests that emotional parentification (i.e., parents seeking
emotional caretaking from their children) may have the most detrimental impact on children’s
socioemotional functioning (Jurkovic, 1997; Jurkovic, Jessee, & Goglia, 1991). More
specifically, when children are consistently thrust into the roles of comforter, protector,
confidante, problem-solver, and/or mediator for distressed parents, this process is likely to
interfere with children’s healthy emotional development and lead to significant child distress
(e.g., feelings of anxiety, responsibility, numbing, depression).
No known research has focused on the potential impact of parentification on children’s
emotional development. Research has, however, identified certain emotion management skills
that underlie competent emotional functioning and promote psychosocial and physical health