Implications of Identification with Parents and Parents' Acceptance for Adolescent and Young Adult Self-esteem

Abstract

Although several authors have suggested that youths' identification with their parents plays an important role in how they come to evaluate themselves, this hypothesis has not been explored empirically in longitudinal research. Using prospective data from a representative community sample, we tested whether the association between adolescents' identification with mother and father and subsequent gains in global self-esteem would hinge on the parent's acceptance or rejection of the adolescent. Results showed that male adolescents' self-esteem consistently improved the more they identified with their parents. Among female adolescents, the change in self-esteem associated with parental identification depended on the parent's evaluation of them, suggesting that identifying with a rejecting parent presents a particular vulnerability for low self-esteem in young women.

Notes

Supported by grants MH-38916 and MH-49191 from the National Institute of Mental Health (Dr Cohen) and DA-03188 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (Dr Brook).

Demographic differences in the primary variables of interest were also examined. Family SES was modestly associated with adolescent self-esteem (r = .11, p < .01), acceptance by mothers (r = .17, p < .001) and acceptance by fathers (r = .13, p < .01) in both genders. Parental acceptance did not differ by race among male adolescents, but minority adolescent girls were less accepted (mothers, M = 75.2; fathers M = 69.4) than White adolescent girls (mothers M = 82.4; t = 3.07, p < .01; fathers M = 82.3; t = 2.49, p < .05). Identification with father was positively associated with SES (r = .14, p < .001) and was lower for minority (M = 48.8) than for White (M = 59.4; t = 3.49, p < .01) adolescents, whereas identification with mother did not vary with SES or race. Age was positively associated with young adult self-esteem among females, as noted in the text, but was not significantly related to acceptance by parents or identification with them.

Although it is tempting to speculate about the differences in mothers' and fathers' roles as parents that could plausibly account for the greater reciprocity observed in father – adolescent evaluations than in mother – adolescent evaluations, this pattern may well be an artifact of fathers' acceptance being reported by mothers, rather than the fathers themselves. That is, mothers' inferences regarding the fathers' acceptance may be based in part on observations of father – adolescent interactions and therefore take the adolescent's perspective into account more than when they reported on their own acceptance.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kathy R Berenson

Supported by grants MH-38916 and MH-49191 from the National Institute of Mental Health (Dr Cohen) and DA-03188 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (Dr Brook).