engleski

Psychological Maladjustment Mediates the Relation Between Remembrances of Parental Rejection in Childhood and Adults’ Fear of Intimacy: A Multicultural Study

Perceived parental rejection in childhood is known to be associated panculturally with at least 10 specific personality dispositions, including anxiety, insecurity, anger, impaired self-esteem, emotional unresponsiveness, negative worldview, and rejection sensitivity—among others. Because of these negative personality dispositions, interpersonal acceptance-rejection theory (IPARTheory) predicts that adults’ remembrances of parental rejection in childhood are likely to be associated with adults’ fear of intimacy, as mediated by adults’ psychological maladjustment and relationship anxiety. The theory also predicts that these associations will not vary significantly by gender, ethnicity/culture, or other such defining conditions. To test these predictions a sample of 3, 483 young adults in 13 nations responded to the mother and father versions of the Adult Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire (short forms), Adult Personality Assessment Questionnaire (short form), the Interpersonal Relationship Anxiety Questionnaire, the Fear of Intimacy Scale, and the Revised Personal Information Form. Results of SEM analyses confirmed the prediction in all 13 countries and across both genders that adults’ remembrances of both maternal and paternal rejection independently predict adults’ psychological maladjustment and relationship anxiety, which in turn predict fear of intimacy. Psychological maladjustment partially mediated the association between remembered maternal and paternal rejection, and adults’ fear of intimacy.

fear of intimacy, psychological maladjustment, parental rejection, multicultural study

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