Attachment Orientations and the Development of Israeli Elementary School-Age Children: The Role of Dependent Relationship

Abstract

Associations between attachment orientations and development throughout the school year were explored in 167 Israeli elementary school-age children (mean age 9.58, range 8-12). Using a person-centered approach, the findings indicate differences in children's development as a function of their attachment orientation. Consistent with hypotheses, children characterized by a balanced relationship with their mothers exhibited the highest level of adjustment mainly in the emotional and the social realms in the beginning and at the end of the year. However, contrary to predictions, children characterized by a dependent relationship with their mothers made more progress in these areas during the year than children who were characterized by either a balanced or a distant relationship. These findings are discussed from a cultural perspective.

Does Emotional Dependence and Perceived Parental Acceptance Predict Children's Psychological Maladjustment?

“…Therefore, our results support the idea that child dependence could reflect psychological adjustment (not maladjustment). These results are not consistent with studies that associate emotional dependence with child psychological maladjustment, particularly with internalizing problems such as inhibition, anxiety, or depression in children (Goldner, ; Wood, ). It is possible that differences in the levels of dependence in children would need to be more extreme to show evidence of differences in internalizing maladjustment levels.…”

“…Findings from this study support previous research suggesting the relationship between parental rejection and the psychological adjustment of children is complex and conditioned by child dependence levels (Bowlby, ; Goldner, ; Khaleque, , ; Zeanah & Gleason, ). Moreover, consistent with IPARTheory, our findings indicate that the relationship between dependence and parental rejection specifically best fit a curvilinear representation rather than a linear relationship in the Cartesian axes (Khaleque & Rohner, ; Rohner, , ; Rohner & Khaleque, ; Zeanah & Gleason, ) in both the case of the father and of the mother.…”

“…Emotional dependence in children has been explored in relation to parental behavior (Khaleque & Rohner, ; Rohner, , ; Soenens & Vansteenkiste, ), attachment bond (Bowlby, ; Zeanah & Gleason, ), and child psychological adjustment and adaptation (Campos, ; Goldner, ). This previous research suggests dependence can be used to assess the relationships between parents and children and to reflect children's psychological maladjustment.…”

“…Moreover, child dependence has been shown to be a clear indicator of the altered patterns of attachment that are associated with parental negligence, rejection, or neglect behaviors (American Psychiatric Association, ; Zeanah & Gleason, ). High levels of dependence on primary caregivers have also been associated with both internalizing (e.g., self‐esteem, depression, anxiety) and externalizing (e.g., aggression, behavioral problems) signs of psychological maladjustment (Campos, ; Goldner, ). Taking these studies into account, it seems that the combination of both the level of child dependence and the perceived parental behavior (e.g., an excess of perceived parental acceptance or rejection) may contribute to the variance in children's psychological adjustment.…”

“…Theoretical models have emphasized the influence of parenting on the development, maintenance, and amelioration of childhood problems (Bowlby, ; Khaleque & Rohner, ; Maccoby, ; Soenens & Vansteenkiste, ). Yet factors other than parenting, such as child emotional dependence, may also account for the variance in children's psychological maladjustment (Campos, ; Goldner, ; Zeanah & Gleason, ). Further studies addressing the influence of these factors on the relation between parenting and children's mental health outcomes may provide more nuanced evidence on the role parenting can play in the emergence of childhood problems.…”