The relationship between perceived parenting style and attachment styles, depending on the family structure

Abstract

This paper objective is to investigate the elements from childhood that can be associated with some type of attachment in adult relationships. Participants were 207 young people aged between 20 and 30 (M= 23,22), from Romania, who have been in a relationship during the last year. The used instruments were: Parental Authority Questionnaire and Experiences of Close Relationships Inventory. The results supported that a permissive parental style is associated with a low level of anxiety (r = .17) as a dimension of attachment in adult relationships; while authoritarian parental style coincides with avoidance tendencies (r = .17) and an increased anxiety (r = .35) in adult relationships and last but not least, authoritative parental style is associated with low levels of anxiety (r = .19) or avoidance (r = .29) in relation to others. Furthermore, the work revealed differences between participants from single-parent families (following the death of their mother or father) and participants who were raised in two parent families, the latter having a lower level of avoidance, being able to express themselves more easily in relationships and show their affection. The parental structure was not supported as a significant moderator of the relationship between perceived parenting style and attachment.