The present study explores the transmission of attachment and family functioning across three generations. It is based on a sample of 460 female emerging adults (aged 18-26), their mothers (N = 440), fathers (N = 368), maternal grandmothers (N = 224), and maternal grandfathers (N = 113). Participants self-assessed their attachment anxiety and avoidance using the Relationship Style Questionnaire and evaluated the functioning of their families of origin using the Family Adaptation and Cohesion Scale-IV. The results reveal two mechanisms, both of which have a small but significant effect on the development of attachment across generations. The first operates via direct trans-generational transmission of attachment from parent to child, mainly involving the mother-child dyad, while the second operates through primary family functioning, especially balanced family cohesion, but also enmeshment and chaos in the case of attachment avoidance. The findings highlight the importance of including content related to attachment and family functioning in intervention programs.
本研究探讨了依恋和家庭功能在三代人之间的传递。该研究以460名刚成年女性(18岁至26岁)、她们的母亲(440人)、父亲(368人)、外祖母(224人)和外祖父(113人)为样本。参与者使用关系风格问卷对他们的依恋焦虑和回避进行自我评估，并使用家庭适应和凝聚力量表-IV对其原生家庭的功能进行评价。研究结果揭示了两种机制，这两种机制都对依恋的发展具有较小但显著的跨代影响。第一个机制是通过父母对子女的直接跨代传递来运作的，主要涉及母子关系，而第二个机制是通过主要的家庭功能来运作的，特别是平衡的家庭凝聚力，但在依恋回避的情况下，也会有啮合和混乱现象。这些发现强调了在干预项目中包括与依恋和家庭功能有关的内容的重要性。.
Keywords: attachment anxiety; attachment avoidance; family adaptability; family cohesion; trans-generational transmission; 依恋回避; 依恋焦虑.
© 2022 The Authors. Family Process published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Family Process Institute.