Elsevier

Child Abuse & Neglect

Volume 27, Issue 9, September 2003, Pages 1033-1043
Child Abuse & Neglect

Emotional neglect and family structure: impact on student functioning

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0145-2134(03)00162-5Get rights and content

Abstract

Objective: The goal of this study was to demonstrate the relationship between retrospective reports of child neglect, family of origin functioning, and current psychological distress. It was hypothesized that experience of childhood emotional neglect would be associated with lower levels of cohesion and adaptability in participants’ family of origin and greater levels of current psychological distress. Gender effects were explored.

Method: Retrospective reports of emotional neglect in childhood were quantified by use of a parental bonding measure, specifically by assessing level of perceived parental care. Participants were assigned to one of three groups based on level of care scores: neglect by a primary male caregiver, neglect by a primary female caregiver, and no neglect. These groups were compared on three variables: current psychological functioning, retrospective report of family of origin adaptability, and retrospective report of family of origin cohesiveness. Amount of time left in the care of others was used as a covariate based on attachment theory literature.

Results: Data were analyzed for 69 female and 22 male undergraduate students. Participants who reported a childhood experience of emotional neglect by a primary female caregiver described greater current psychological distress than those reporting no neglect or neglect by a primary male caregiver. Participants who experienced emotional neglect by a primary female caregiver, as compared to those reporting emotional neglect by a primary male caregiver and those reporting no neglect, described lower cohesion and adaptability in their family of origin. There were no differences between male and female participants in terms of impact of emotional neglect.

Conclusions: This study suggests potential caregiver gender effects, regardless of respondent gender. Perceived neglect by female, but not male caregivers, led to psychological distress in adulthood and was associated with lower cohesion and adaptability in one’s family of origin. Future research should attempt to account for the participants’ expectations regarding male and female caregiver roles.

Résumé

French- and Spanish-language abstracts not available at time of publication.

Resumen

French- and Spanish-language abstracts not available at time of publication.

Introduction

Previous studies have reported the deleterious effects of maltreatment in childhood on subsequent psychological functioning. According to data collected by the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), approximately 58% of child maltreatment cases in 1999 were classified as child neglect (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2001). NCANDS data from 1999 further indicated that approximately 38% of child maltreatment fatalities were associated with child neglect. Dubowitz (1994) stated that although child neglect is the most prevalent form of child maltreatment, “fewer than 2% of federally funded research studies on child maltreatment focused on child neglect in 1993” (p. 556). Wolock and Horowitz (1984) suggested that research studies are needed in the area of child neglect to determine what types of child neglect are associated with which types of family problems.

Burgess and Conger (1978) broadly defined neglect as the “harming of a child either through lack of care or supervision.” They further state it is difficult to clearly define neglect because it deals with behaviors regarding caregiver-child relationships, which fall along a continuum, and often it is not clear where a specific case falls along this continuum. Dubowitz, Black, Starr, and Zuravin (1993) defined neglect as occurring “when the basic needs of children are not met, regardless of cause. Basic needs include adequate shelter, food, health care, clothing, education, protection, and nurturance.” The National Incidence Studies describe child neglect by breaking the concept into three categories: physical, educational, and emotional neglect (US Department of Health and Human Services, 1996). All three categories involve the adequacy of care and assume that all children have basic needs that must be met.

Crittenden (1999) defined the core of emotional neglect as the “failure to connect emotionally.” Ainsworth and Bowlby (as cited in Cassidy, 1999) described the importance of attachment bonds in relationships, especially child-caregiver relationships. In these relationships proximity to or contact with a specific person is sought and security and comfort are sought within the relationship. Gauthier, Stollak, Messe, and Aronoff (1996) view emotional neglect as falling on a continuum of parent behavior designed to maintain the attachment bond. Emotional neglect as falls on the extreme end of the continuum which ranges from “positive interactions” to “complete disengagement between parents and their children” (Gauthier et al., 1996). Despite the lack of a clear definition of emotional neglect, there is a general consensus that emotional neglect is related to the attachment or formation of a cohesive bond between a child and his/her parents. Olson, Bell, and Portner (1992) describe family cohesion as one dimension of family functioning representing the emotional bonds between family members.

Researchers have also suggested that children’s attachment or emotional closeness with their parents is fundamental to their psychological wellbeing. Loos and Alexander (1997) found that young adults, emotionally neglected as children, were more likely to experience loneliness and social isolation as compared to their non-neglected peers. This study also found a gender effect in that paternal emotional neglect was related to loneliness in men. Lipschitz et al. (1999) found that a significant number of adolescent inpatients reporting emotional neglect experienced suicidal ideation and self-mutilation. These studies suggest that emotional neglect during childhood may be associated with poor psychological functioning in adolescence and young adulthood. Detrimental effects similar to those associated with emotional neglect have been linked to poor attachment such as: social isolation, difficulties in school, and feelings of despair (Collins & Gunner, 1990, Crittenden, 1992). In addition, Bowlby (as cited in Loos & Alexander, 1997) states that parents’ lack of interest or consistently failing to meet the emotional needs of a child may result in negative self-evaluations later in life. Ultimately, adults who experienced poor attachment during childhood may struggle to provide emotionally for their own children (Crittenden, 1992). It appears as though there is an intergenerational cycle of emotional neglect as well as a cycle of physical abuse.

In addition to studies of attachment, researchers have also considered the relationship between various family structures during childhood and later psychological functioning. Burgess and Conger (1978) examined family interaction in abusive and neglectful families and compared them to normal families. Their study found support for the contention that the interactional styles of neglectful mothers and fathers may differ. Neglectful mothers in the study tended to exhibit the most negative interactions with other family members (Burgess & Conger, 1978). Neglectful fathers had fewer interactions overall with family members and the interactions they did have were less positive than the interactions of nonabusive fathers.

Olson, Bell, and Portner (1992) proposed a Circumplex Model of marital and family systems with two continuum dimensions: adaptability and cohesiveness. Family relationships depicted on extreme ends of each continuum are considered less functional than family relationships near the middle. They defined adaptability as the “ability of a marital or family system to change its power structure, role relationships, and relationship rules in response to situational and developmental stress” (p. 1). As contrasted with healthy adaptability, rigid familial relationships are characterized by one individual exerting a disproportionate amount of control in the family. Crittenden (1999) stated that emotionally neglectful homes tend to be highly structured or less adaptable. Wolfe (1985) described neglectful parents as responding to child-rearing demands by avoidance or disengagement. Disengagement is one of the negative relational patterns in Olson’s (1993) cohesion continuum. Disengagement is characterized by emotional isolation as well as intellectual and physical isolation. In a disengaged family, members are minimally involved with each other. Individual members function separately and independently (Olson, 1993). It seems likely emotional neglect would occur more often in families characterized by low levels of adaptability and cohesion than in families with more balanced relationships.

While there is not a clear and consistent definition of emotional neglect, there is a general consensus that emotional neglect is related to the attachment or formation of a bond between a child and his/her parents. As poor attachment is thought to reflect emotional neglect, the present investigation used a measure of parental bonding to quantify emotional neglect. Further, while cohesion and adaptability in families seem conceptually linked to emotional neglect, there have been no known investigations to date which systematically assess the relationship between emotional neglect and these dimensions of family functioning. Previous studies have also suggested differential effects on current functioning for paternal versus maternal emotional neglect (e.g., Loos & Alexander, 1997). Finally, Bowlby’s theory would suggest the amount of time a child is in the care of others might impede attachment by minimizing opportunities for proximity and contact. In light of the literature reviewed, research hypotheses for the present study were as follows:

  • 1.

    Individuals reporting a childhood experience of emotional neglect by a primary male or by a primary female caregiver will display higher levels of current psychological distress than those without neglect experiences.

  • 2.

    Individuals reporting a childhood experience of emotional neglect will describe their family of origin as lower in cohesion than those without neglect experiences.

  • 3.

    Individuals reporting a childhood experience of emotional neglect will describe their family of origin as lower in adaptability than those without neglect experiences.

  • 4.

    Females reporting a childhood experience of emotional neglect by a primary female caregiver will display higher levels of current psychological distress and will describe their family of origin as lower in cohesion as compared to those experiencing no neglect or neglect by a primary male caregiver. Males reporting a childhood experience of emotional neglect by a primary male caregiver will display higher levels of current psychological distress and will describe their family of origin as lower in cohesion as compared to those experiencing no neglect or neglect by a primary female caregiver.

Section snippets

Participants

Participants were recruited from the undergraduate research pool at a midsized, public university in the Midwest of the United States. Participants volunteered for the study as one of several options for obtaining class credit to fulfill the research participation component of their undergraduate psychology course. Data were collected from 99 female and 35 male college undergraduates. Data from 43 participants were not used as those subjects reported physical and/or sexual abuse during

Results

Participants in the study were 69 female and 22 male undergraduate students. Of the 91 participants included in the final analysis, 77 (82.8%) were Caucasian, 9 (9.7%) African American, 3 (3.2%) Hispanic, 1 (1.1%) Other, and 1 (1.1%) did not indicate ethnicity. Subjects’ ages ranged from 18 to 48 with an average age of 21.90.

The results of the multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) supported a significant overall effect F(3,71)=118.58, p<.001. Significant differences were found for all

Discussion

The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between perceived emotional child neglect and adult psychological functioning. The relationship between perceived emotional neglect and recollections of family of origin functioning was also investigated. Participants who experienced emotional neglect by a female caregiver during childhood reported higher levels of current psychological distress. According to Loos and Alexander (1997) emotional neglect in childhood has a

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