Explored long-term effects of different childrearing contexts on attachment and separation representations of Israeli 16- to 18-year-olds. Found that adolescents raised in a kibbutz communal setting showed higher incidence of nonautonomous attachment representations and less competent coping with imagined separations than adolescents raised in a…

Developed and validated Parents of Adolescents Separation Anxiety Scale with parents of sixth, eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders, and college freshmen and seniors. Factor analyses supported two subscales: Anxiety about Adolescent Distancing (AAD) and Comfort with Secure Base Role (CSBR); both showed distinctive change patterns with child age.…

This study examined associations between the quality of adolescent relationships with mothers, fathers, best friends, and boy/girlfriends. One hundred and sixty-two adolescents from three high schools completed questionnaires, in a one-on-one setting in which they rated parent and peer relationships on seven relationship features including…

Investigated homesickness in boys ages 8 through 16. Results indicated that homesickness was prevalent and varied in intensity, was experienced as a combination of depression and anxiety, was presented most often as internalizing behavior, and was more typical for younger boys. The most-homesick became increasingly so during the separation,…

In relationships among attachment classification, psychopathology, and personality, traits were examined in a group of 60 psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents. Attachment was examined in 27 adolescent-mother pairs. Both adolescent and maternal attachment status were overwhelmingly insecure and were highly concordant. Results support a model of…

Examined long-term sequelae of severe adolescent psychopathology from the perspective of adult attachment theory. Compared 66 upper-middle-class adolescents who were psychiatrically hospitalized at age 14 for problems other than thought or organic disorders, to 76 socio-demographically similar high school students. When reviewed at age 25,…

Adolescents in psychiatric treatment (N=133) participated in a case-comparison study investigating the association of attachment patterns with a history of suicidal behaviors. Attachment patterns were assessed using the Adult Attachment Interview. In accordance with definitions provided in the scoring system, 86% of case and 78% of comparison…

Gender differences were examined in 182 freshman college students who had completed a packet of questionnaires and inventories to address the impact of separation from parents and to test relevance of self-in-relation theory. Differences indicated that women reported establishing more of all kinds of support. Other results are reported. (JBJ)

Examined the effects of college students' (n=90) family structures on the separation-individuation process. Family structure groups investigated were intact; divorced, mother-custody, no remarriage; and divorced, mother-custody, remarried. The components of the separation-individuation process examined were attachment to parents, conflictual…

Numerous studies have shown that viewing media violence encourages aggression, desensitization, and pessimism in children. This book reviews research on the effects of television and movie violence on children and adolescents, offering parents suggestions for dealing with the problems it creates. It is asserted that parents frequently…