Guest lecture

Question 1

Parenting styles: 2 dimensions

Answer 1

Demandingness (control): parental concerns for child to be responsible and adhere to expectations
Responsiveness (rejection): degree of support, warmth, affection
4 categories across the dimensions: permissive indulgent, authoritative, authoritarian, rejecting neglecting

Question 2

Attachment styles:

Answer 2

2 dimensions- formed in infancy- impacts entire life
Internal working model of self (anxiety): tied to separation distress: how distressed am I now that you left? How do I view myself
Internal working model of others (avoidance): tied to safe haven: can I rely on others to comfort me and provide safety when threatened- can I trust them
4 categories across the dimensions: resistant, secure, avoidant, disorganized

Question 3

Attachment style develop based on parenting behaviours- secure vs ressitant

Answer 3

-Secure attachment: high responsiveness (warmth) leads to proper model of self worth (anxiety) and they can seek others for security (low avoidance)
-Resistant attachment: insconsident/unpredicative responsiveness lead to low model of self (high anxiety), high display of emotions to try to make caregivers give attention (low avoidance)

Question 4

Attachment as a mediator for parenting impacting outcomes

Answer 4

Mediator: another way that an independent variable affects the dependent variable- explanatory variable- explain why an effect on the dependent variable happens. Eg sleep quality impacts academic performance through mediators of alertness.

Question 5

Chorot et al-

Answer 5

how does anxious attachment, control and lack of warmth lead to symptoms and GAD (fear about unfamiliar situations and avoidant behaviour)

Question 6

Chorot et al-hypothesis

Answer 6

Hypothesis: Parent child rearing styles contribute to significant and unique proportion of anxiety symptoms; attachment styles contribute to significant and unique portion of anxiety symptoms; attachment styles mediate association between parental rearing styles and anxiety

Question 7

Chorot et al-methods

Answer 7

Methods: 1002 children- complete self report questionnaire measuring behaviours, attachment and anxiety on 3 point scale

Question 8

Chorot et al-results

Answer 8

Results: 2 dimensions of control (overcontrol and aversiveness) and one dimension of rejection (neglect) significantly associated with anxiety. fearful/preoccupied attachment styles were significantly associated. Fearful preoccupied attached mediates relationship between overcontrol, aversiveness and neglect with anxiety symptoms
What does this study tell us about interactions b/w parenting and attachment and anxiety:
-Parental control is strongest supported factor- more supported in literature than parental rejection
-fearful/preoccupied attachment styles are mediators- control and rejection lead to fearful/preoccupied attachment and fearful/preoccupied attachment are associated with anxiety.

Question 9

Mechanism for anxiety symptoms:
Parental control

Answer 9

-key symptom: avoidance of novel situations. Since control- interferes with autonomy development; creates cognitive distortion with self efficacy (believe they aren’t capable of taking on new situations).
-high control prevents proper coping mechanisms and responses to the insecure attachment (prevent from seeking out others)- associated with attachment

Question 10

Mechanism for anxiety symptoms
Parental rejection

Answer 10

-Key symptom: hostile perception of the world. Since parental rejection- reinforces avoidant behaviours (learnthat the world is unsafe and that those won’t help me when i/m in need)
-High rejection can lead to negative model of self and may lead to either positive or negative model of others: either show high avoidance (everyone will reject) or low avoidance (seek others- for support for everything)
Parental rejection and parental control closely associated with attachment- mediates/explains why these lead to anxious attamehct→ anxiety