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Research article

First published July 1998

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An Exploratory Study of Young Persons' Attachment Styles and Perceived Reasons for Parental Divorce

Tavi R. Walker and Marion F. EhrenbergView all authors and affiliations

Volume 13, Issue 3

https://doi.org/10.1177/0743554898133005

Abstract

The relation between young people 'perceptions of the reasonsfortheirparents 'divorces and their own feelings of security in romantic relationships was explored in this study. Eighty-one young persons from divorced homes completed the Reasons for Parental Divorce Questionnaire (RPDQ) developed specifically for this study and self-report instruments regarding attachment style, as measured by the Relationship Questionnaire (RQ) (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991) and the Relationships Scale Questionnaire (RSQ) (Griffin & Bartholomew, 1994). The majority (73%) of young people in this study described insecure attachment styles. As expected, perceptions of why parents divorced were significantly related to young persons'attachment outcomes. Reasons for divorce involving expressions of overt anger; the involvement of the children, and extramarital affairs were most important in differentiating secure and insecure young persons. Thus, these results indicate that there may be meaningful connections between young people 's understandings of theirparents 'divorces and their own romantic relational perspectives.

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1. To assure maximum coverage of potential reasons for parental divorce, the final section of the RPDQ provided participants with an opportunity to add any reasons missed by the researchers. Although 12 of the 81 research participants (15%) added one item to the RPDQ, many of these additional responses reflected themes already covered on the RPDQ (e.g., "Dad was addicted to drugs" and "Dad was not very dependable"). Truly idiosyncratic responses included "Dad was not ready to have kids" and "Both parents were still dealing with their own childhood traumas." Following an examination for empirical support, a revised RPDQ might include items related to parental preparedness and unresolved past issues.

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