Abstract
The main aim of the present study was to test Rogers’ theory, stating that parental styles characterized by unconditional positive regard (UPR) promote healthier adults than parental styles characterized by conditional regard (CR). For both caregivers CR was found to be associated with significantly higher scores on psychological complaints than UPR (on nearly all SCL-90 scales and the SCL-total score), even when controlling for gender. Although lack of emotional warmth by the father and harsh discipline by the mother were significant predictors of SCL-90-Total (indicating state neuroticism) it should be noted that both variables only explained a small amount of the total variance. Empirical evidence was found for Rogers’ theory. Others factors than merely emotional warmth and discipline play a role in the etiology of state neuroticism. For future research it is therefore recommended to include other factors, such as daily worries, temperament, and alexithymia
Highlights
The role of early experiences in the development of future psychological problems has been the focus of many personality theories, as demonstrated in Rogers’s theory (1951), which mainly considered that a healthy development of personality has to do with favorable conditions which occur especially in parent-child interactions during the formative years
Descriptives of the SCL-90 variables for the four paternal and maternal parental styles are reported in Tables 1a and 1b
Results of Psychological Complaints for the Parental Style Mother The results of the one-way ANOVAs with all SCL-90 scales as dependent variables and parental styles of the mother as independent variable were significant for agoraphobia, F(3, 121) = 3.13, p = .028, anxiety, F(3, 121) = 3.84, p = .011, depression, F(3, 121) = 5.48, p = .001, insufficiency, F(3, 121) = 3.17, p = .027, hostility, F(3, 121) = 3.35, p = .021, and the Neuroticism scale, F(3, 121) = 5.49, p =
Summary
The role of early experiences in the development of future psychological problems has been the focus of many personality theories, as demonstrated in Rogers’s theory (1951), which mainly considered that a healthy development of personality has to do with favorable conditions which occur especially in parent-child interactions during the formative years In his theory, the considered optimal relationship is Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR), which is characterized by the child being consistently prized regardless of one’s behavior, and by constantly receiving affection and acceptance. Research in this field suggests that individuals reared in UPR parental styles tend to present a higher self-concept Due to this condition, those individuals could experience less vulnerability either from negative internal or external cues. Individuals with a higher sense of vulnerability tend to experience more psychological distress when exposed to negative internal or external cues
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