Too close for comfort: Inadequate boundaries with parents and individuation in late adolescent girls.

Abstract

This longitudinal study examined the ramifications of psychological control-guilt induction, parentification, triangulation, and blurring in parent-adolescent relationships for girls' individuation and adjustment. The study followed 120 girls in their transition from high school to military service. Results from the variable-centered and person-centered analyses merged in underscoring the somewhat different developmental path of two groups of inadequate boundary constellations. The group with high guilt induction and psychological control, which involves rejection and invalidation of the child's autonomous self, evinced the worst coping and adjustment to the transition and the lowest level of individuation with a combination of angry entanglement and strivings for overindependence. The blurred-parentified group resembled the adequate boundaries group regarding some indicators (e.g., low levels of engulfment anxiety and high conflictual independence), but further revealed overdependence and immaturity (e.g., high nurturance seeking, low emotional independence, and the lowest functional independence). Implications for preventive work with adolescents and their families are suggested.

Boundary Diffusion, Individuation, and Adjustment: Comparison of Young Adults Raised in Divorced Versus Intact Families

“…These findings support structural family system theory's claim and “clinical hunches” that boundary diffusion within the family is negatively related to children's adjustment, not just in the short term but also in the realm of older adolescence and young adulthood. Consistent with previous research (Fosco & Grych, ; Mayseless & Scharf, ), feelings of loyalty conflicts among young adult children were reliably linked to generally poor psychological adjustment and, also more specifically, to compromised adjustment in relationship functioning. Recollections of triangulation were particularly strong in their association with negative adjustment among young men with married parents, tentatively suggesting that in intact families adolescent boys may be especially vulnerable to experiencing negative consequences from being engaged in their parents' disagreements.…”

“…Likely these young adults were in conflictual relationships with their parents but, at the same time, unable to separate themselves because of feeling excessive amounts of guilt, obligation, and loyalty to their parents. The pattern of associations were similar irrespective of participants' gender and family structure, thus demonstrating that the previously documented associations between boundary diffusion and individuation (Mayseless & Scharf, ) are generalizable from females to males, as well as from those raised in intact families to young adults with divorced parents.…”

Boundary Diffusion, Individuation, and Adjustment: Comparison of Young Adults Raised in Divorced Versus Intact Families

“…These findings support structural family system theory's claim and “clinical hunches” that boundary diffusion within the family is negatively related to children's adjustment, not just in the short term but also in the realm of older adolescence and young adulthood. Consistent with previous research (Fosco & Grych, ; Mayseless & Scharf, ), feelings of loyalty conflicts among young adult children were reliably linked to generally poor psychological adjustment and, also more specifically, to compromised adjustment in relationship functioning. Recollections of triangulation were particularly strong in their association with negative adjustment among young men with married parents, tentatively suggesting that in intact families adolescent boys may be especially vulnerable to experiencing negative consequences from being engaged in their parents' disagreements.…”

“…Likely these young adults were in conflictual relationships with their parents but, at the same time, unable to separate themselves because of feeling excessive amounts of guilt, obligation, and loyalty to their parents. The pattern of associations were similar irrespective of participants' gender and family structure, thus demonstrating that the previously documented associations between boundary diffusion and individuation (Mayseless & Scharf, ) are generalizable from females to males, as well as from those raised in intact families to young adults with divorced parents.…”

Parental psychological control and dysfunctional separation–individuation: A tale of two different dynamics

“…The findings of this study support the idea that a psychologically controlling parenting climate may interfere with the development of separation–individuation (Barber, 1996). They are in line with results from recent studies showing that psychological control is related to separation–individuation pathology (e.g., Kins et al, 2011; Mayseless & Scharf, 2009). The present study, however, extends these findings as it is the first to indicate that domain‐specific expressions of psychological control are related differentially to dysfunctional dependent and dysfunctional independent manifestations of problematic separation–individuation.…”

Young Adults’ Individuation with Mother and Father as a Function of Dysfunctional Family Patterns, Gender and Parental Divorce

“……”

Boundary Diffusion, Individuation, and Adjustment: Comparison of Young Adults Raised in Divorced Versus Intact Families

“…These findings support structural family system theory's claim and “clinical hunches” that boundary diffusion within the family is negatively related to children's adjustment, not just in the short term but also in the realm of older adolescence and young adulthood. Consistent with previous research (Fosco & Grych, ; Mayseless & Scharf, ), feelings of loyalty conflicts among young adult children were reliably linked to generally poor psychological adjustment and, also more specifically, to compromised adjustment in relationship functioning. Recollections of triangulation were particularly strong in their association with negative adjustment among young men with married parents, tentatively suggesting that in intact families adolescent boys may be especially vulnerable to experiencing negative consequences from being engaged in their parents' disagreements.…”

“…Likely these young adults were in conflictual relationships with their parents but, at the same time, unable to separate themselves because of feeling excessive amounts of guilt, obligation, and loyalty to their parents. The pattern of associations were similar irrespective of participants' gender and family structure, thus demonstrating that the previously documented associations between boundary diffusion and individuation (Mayseless & Scharf, ) are generalizable from females to males, as well as from those raised in intact families to young adults with divorced parents.…”

Parental psychological control and dysfunctional separation–individuation: A tale of two different dynamics

“…The findings of this study support the idea that a psychologically controlling parenting climate may interfere with the development of separation–individuation (Barber, 1996). They are in line with results from recent studies showing that psychological control is related to separation–individuation pathology (e.g., Kins et al, 2011; Mayseless & Scharf, 2009). The present study, however, extends these findings as it is the first to indicate that domain‐specific expressions of psychological control are related differentially to dysfunctional dependent and dysfunctional independent manifestations of problematic separation–individuation.…”

Young Adults’ Individuation with Mother and Father as a Function of Dysfunctional Family Patterns, Gender and Parental Divorce

“……”

Boundary Diffusion, Individuation, and Adjustment: Comparison of Young Adults Raised in Divorced Versus Intact Families

“…These findings support structural family system theory's claim and “clinical hunches” that boundary diffusion within the family is negatively related to children's adjustment, not just in the short term but also in the realm of older adolescence and young adulthood. Consistent with previous research (Fosco & Grych, ; Mayseless & Scharf, ), feelings of loyalty conflicts among young adult children were reliably linked to generally poor psychological adjustment and, also more specifically, to compromised adjustment in relationship functioning. Recollections of triangulation were particularly strong in their association with negative adjustment among young men with married parents, tentatively suggesting that in intact families adolescent boys may be especially vulnerable to experiencing negative consequences from being engaged in their parents' disagreements.…”

“…Likely these young adults were in conflictual relationships with their parents but, at the same time, unable to separate themselves because of feeling excessive amounts of guilt, obligation, and loyalty to their parents. The pattern of associations were similar irrespective of participants' gender and family structure, thus demonstrating that the previously documented associations between boundary diffusion and individuation (Mayseless & Scharf, ) are generalizable from females to males, as well as from those raised in intact families to young adults with divorced parents.…”

Parental psychological control and dysfunctional separation–individuation: A tale of two different dynamics

“…The findings of this study support the idea that a psychologically controlling parenting climate may interfere with the development of separation–individuation (Barber, 1996). They are in line with results from recent studies showing that psychological control is related to separation–individuation pathology (e.g., Kins et al, 2011; Mayseless & Scharf, 2009). The present study, however, extends these findings as it is the first to indicate that domain‐specific expressions of psychological control are related differentially to dysfunctional dependent and dysfunctional independent manifestations of problematic separation–individuation.…”

Young Adults’ Individuation with Mother and Father as a Function of Dysfunctional Family Patterns, Gender and Parental Divorce

“……”