Date of Award

Spring 2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Psychology

Committee Chairperson

Michael Roche, PhD

Committee Member

Eleanor Brown, PhD

Committee Member

Kristen Breit, PhD

Abstract

Throughout the lifespan, parent and child dyads have been well researched. Parenting behaviors can influence a child’s attachment towards the parent, and both elements have been linked to adult psychopathology (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters & Wall, 1978; Baumrind, 1987; Bowlby, 1969). Various forms of assessments can quantify the constructs within the parent-child dyad, with the most common being self-report and behavioral coding. One assessment that has been underutilized is the vignette-based assessment. This method allows for greater uniformity and can provide additional information about the parent-child dynamics (Baudat, Zimmermann, Antonietti, & Van Petegem, 2017). It has been noted that few studies have measured attachment style and parenting style using both self-report and vignette-based methods. Additionally, fewer studies have segregated the parental roles into mother and father. Accordingly, this dissertation examines parent-child relationships and their link to adult psychopathology. Specifically, maladaptive attachment styles (fearful and distant) and positive parenting behaviors (autonomy-granting and responsiveness) were related to psychopathology. Furthermore, ratings of vignettes were additionally related to psychopathology and evidenced incremental validity over and above self-report information. When evaluating these results more closely, there was also a significant difference between mother and father parenting behaviors in relation to young adult psychopathology and attachment. The findings of this study suggest that additional studies are needed using a multi-mixed method when studying psychopathology.

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