Parent-Child Role Reversal: Development of a Measure and Test of an Attachment Theory Model

Abstract

Abstract The purposes of this study were to develop a measure of parent-child role reversal that could be used to explore the family context and to investigate the differential predictors and consequences of father-child and mother-child role reversal for sons and daughters. From the responses of a sample of 832 college students, a reliable and valid 42-item retrospective measure of parent-child role reversal (Relationship with Parents Scale) was developed. Father-son role reversal was associated with father's alcohol abuse, father-daughter role reversal with daughter's sexual abuse history and father's mental illness, and mother-daughter role reversal with marital conflict and daughter's sexual abuse history. Consistent with Liotti's (1992) attachment theory model of dissociation, mother-child (but not father-child) role reversal predicted dissociation and unresolved/fearful attachment for both males and females. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.