Relationships among attachment, parental attachment and parental rearing style of adolescent depression

Abstract

Objective To explore the relationships among attachment, parental attachment and parental rearing style of adolescent depression. Methods 36 outpatients and hospital patients in Anhui Mental Health Center with depression and their parents were involved as the case group, 33 age-, gender-, and education-matched high school students and their parents as the normal controls. The case group and control group were assessed with Experiences in Close Relationships Inventory (ECR) and Parental Rearing Pattern Questionnaire (EMBU). Results ① The score of attachment avoidance and anxiety dimension in the depression group were obviously higher than that of the control group(73.19±16.63 vs 66.25±12.91, 62.76±13.90 vs 51.97±13.69, P<0.01) ; the score of mother's attachment anxiety in the depression group were significantly higher than that of the control group(72.06±14.23 vs 57.42±12.81), and there were significant differences between two groups (P<0.01). ②The attachment avoidance was positively correlated with parental attachment avoidance in the depression group(r=0.534, r=0.488; P<0.01) . The attachment anxiety dimension was positively correlated with mother's attachment anxiety in depression group (r= 0.532, P<0.01). Attachment avoidance was negatively correlated with parental warmness(r=-0.406, r=-0.462, P<0.01), however attachment avoidance had positive correlation with father's punishment and mother's rejection in depression group (r=0.395, r=0.468; P<0.05). Father's attachment avoidance was negatively correlated with father's warmness(r=-0.527, P<0.01), and mother's attachment avoidance was negatively correlated with mother's warmness(r=-0.491, P<0.01), which was positively correlated with mother's rejection (r=0.392, P<0.05) . ③ Regression analysis showed that mother's warmness rearing style had full mediating effect on the relationship between mother's attachment avoidance and attachment avoidance in depression group, and then mother's refused rearing style partly mediated the relationship between them. But father's warmness didn't have mediating effect on the relationship between father's attachment avoidance and attachment avoidance in depression group. Conclusion The attachment pattern is insecure in the depression group. Parenting attachment and rearing style significantly influence on adolescent depression attachment patterns, and mother's rearing style has mediating effect on the relationship between mother's attachment and depression attachment. Key words: Adolescent; Depression; Attachment; Parental rearing style