Abstract
The purposes of this study were to examine how adolescents’ perceptions of parental powers and how bases of power between the father and the mother separately impact adolescents’ attachment to their father and mother, as well as the changing pattern of such impact. The participants were 44 junior high school students (M = 14.32 years old), 88 high school students (M = 17.27 years old), and 61 university students (M = 20.54 years old) in Japan. Adolescents’ attachment to their parents and their perceptions of parental social powers were assessed. The results indicated that adolescents had a significantly high perceptions of parental expert power. Moreover, the similarity between parental powers strongly impacted the behavioral bonds of adolescents’ attachment. Furthermore, powers between parents mutually defined and influenced the attachment of late adolescents to their parents. Thus, the present study could point out adolescents’ rebuilding their parent-child relationships and the interdependence of parents in child-rearing. These findings are discussed from the perspectives of co-parenting and the social adjustment of parents and children.
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Shimotomai, A. Parental social power, co-parenting, and child attachment: early to late japanese adolescence transitions. Curr Psychol 39, 953–964 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-9811-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-9811-0