Separation Anxiety and its Relation to Parental Attachment Styles among Children

Abstract

The present study aimed at identifying the relationship between parental attachment styles and separation anxiety in the light of the gender of children. Therefore, the scales of separation anxiety and parental attachment were prepared and applied to a sample of 300 students from the upper grades in the primary stage in Jeddah. Results showed statistically significant correlation coefficients between parental attachment styles (anaclitic attachment, anxious attachment, and preoccupied attachment) and separation anxiety (depressive symptoms associated with parental separation anxiety, social concerns, fear of child-mother separation, general anxiety, and total degree of parental separation anxiety). There were no statistically significant differences in anxious attachment and depressive symptoms associated with parental separation anxiety and fear of parent's departure from the house.

Factors Influencing Adolescent Anxiety: The Roles of Mothers, Teachers and Peers

“…When adolescents encounter stressful situations, mothers put aside their excessive worry, anxiety, and avoidance and give adolescents more acceptance and permission. Flexible and effective maternal parenting behavior provides adolescents with an effective safe haven, helps them form a safe attachment, and gives them a full sense of security to explore the unknown world [ 40 ], which effectively buffers anxiety among adolescents [ 74 ].…”