Detailed contribution information
| Contribution title | The Relationship of Parental attachment, Parenting, Regulation and Reflective Functioning with Mentalization in Adolescents with Internalizing Disorders |
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| Contribution code | D3.098 |
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| Form of presentation | Poster |
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| Abstract |
Aim: The study aimed at understanding the parent related factors of attachment, parenting styles, affect regulation and parental RF and their relationship with mentalization in adolescents with internalizing disorders. Methods: The sample consisted of 111 individuals, including 37 adolescents (aged 12-17) with internalizing disorders (depression, anxiety, somatoform, or dissociative disorders) with average intelligence, along with both their parents. Adolescents with comorbid psychiatric conditions, more than five psychotherapy sessions, or separated/divorced parents were excluded. The Mentalization Scale (MentS) assessed Adolescent RF, while parent-related variables were assessed using the Experiences in Close Relationships (RS), Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire, Affect Regulation Checklist, and Parental RF questionnaires. Results and Conclusion: Adolescent self-related mentalization was negatively correlated with maternal authoritarian parenting, maternal attachment avoidance, and paternal attachment insecurity. Other-related mentalization was significantly positively correlated with maternal RF (certainty about mental states i.e., CMS) and paternal RF (interest and curiosity i.e., IC). Motivation to mentalize was negatively correlated with maternal affect regulation and pre-mentalizing modes, but positively correlated with paternal attachment avoidance and insecurity, a unique finding. Global mentalization was negatively correlated with maternal affect regulation and positively correlated with maternal RF (CMS) and paternal RF (IC). All the findings were significant at the 0.05 level. These findings provide unique insights into the relationship of paternal and maternal variables with RF in adolescents with internalizing disorders, an area largely overlooked in research (with the adolescent group and fathers being largely ignored), with significant implications for intervention planning. |