Mother–Daughter and Father–Daughter Attachment of College Student ACOAs

Abstract

This 2005 study compared parent–child attachment in 89 American female Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACOAs) as compared to 201 non-ACOAs. Women attended a large university in the southeastern United States. Participants categorized as ACOA on the Children of Alcoholics Screen Test (CAST; ) reported significantly more negative affect and less support from their fathers as indicated on the Parental Attachment Questionnaire (). When results were examined by the gender of the alcohol-abusing parent, participants who suspected their fathers were problem drinkers did not differ from non-ACOAs in their attachment to either parent. As compared to non-ACOAs, women who self-identified as daughters of problem-drinking mothers reported poorer attachment both to mothers and fathers.