A US longitudinal study found that adolescents with weaker attachment relationships with their fathers tended to have higher levels of introverted and extroverted mental health symptoms. The more severe the extroverted symptoms, the more likely they were to use alcohol more frequently one to two years later. Emotional attachment to their mothers was not associated with these symptoms. The study was published in the journal Developmental Science.
Emotional attachment is a deep and enduring bond formed between individuals characterized by feelings of love, security, and a strong need for intimacy. It is a fundamental aspect of human relationships, beginning with caregivers in childhood and extending to friendships, romantic relationships, and even pets. Emotional attachment provides a sense of stability and support, helping individuals cope with stress and overcome life's challenges. Secure attachment fosters healthy development, emotional well-being, and social functioning, while insecure attachment can lead to difficulties in relationships and emotional regulation.
Previous research has shown a link between mental health and emotional attachment. Insecure emotional attachment is thought to cause both introverted and extroverted symptoms. Introverted symptoms are emotional and behavioral problems that are directed inward, such as anxiety, depression, and social withdrawal. Extroverted symptoms are behaviors that are directed outward, toward other people and the environment, such as aggressive behavior, hyperactivity, and conduct problems.
Adolescence is a critical period for the emergence of both types of mental health problems. For many people, it's the time when these problems first appear. Study author Claudia Clincherd and her colleagues sought to explore how the relationship between insecure attachment and mental health develops as children grow. They were also interested in how substance use relates to the interplay of these factors. They wondered whether insecurity in attachment directly leads to substance use (such as alcoholism), which in turn worsens mental health symptoms, or whether mental health symptoms lead to substance use.
The study involved 167 adolescents and one parent from a southeastern U.S. state. The adolescents were 13-14 years old at the start of the study, and the study followed them for five years until they were 18-20 years old. 47% of participants were girls, and 78% were white. 78% of parent participants were mothers.
Study participants completed questionnaires at five different time points over a five-year period. At the first two time points, participants assessed their attachment to their mother and father separately using the Parent and Peer Attachment Inventory. At the third and fourth time points, participants completed measures of introverted and extroverted mental health symptoms using the Youth Self-Report. Finally, at the last time point, participants rated how often they drank alcohol.
Results showed that adolescents who were more strongly attached to their mothers also tended to be more strongly attached to their fathers. Adolescents who were less attached to their fathers tended to have more introverted and extroverted mental health symptoms. Attachment to mothers was not associated with these symptoms. Girls also tended to have more introverted symptoms.
Alcohol use was associated with externalizing symptoms, and adolescents with more externalizing symptoms tended to use alcohol more frequently. However, apart from the effect of externalizing symptoms, there was no direct association between emotional attachment to either parent and alcohol use. This suggests that insecure attachment to fathers likely increases the risk of developing mental health symptoms, particularly of the externalizing type, and thus increases the risk of alcohol use in adolescents.
“Our findings highlight the importance of the adolescent-father relationship in the developmental pathway, suggesting that adolescent-father attachment in middle adolescence plays a key role in the development of externalizing symptoms in late adolescence, which in turn predicts subsequent alcohol use during the transition to young adulthood,” the study authors conclude.
“The findings support theoretical perspectives emphasizing the importance of social-relational factors in substance use disorders by revealing that insecure attachment to fathers during adolescence sets the stage for a chain reaction that can lead to increased externalizing symptoms and alcohol use.”
This study sheds light on how father-child attachment, especially during early adolescence, influences mental health symptoms later in life. However, all factors studied were assessed using self-reports, which may result in reporting bias. Studies investigating these relationships using data from multiple informants may find different results.
The study, “Longitudinal Associations from Attachment to Mothers and Fathers to Adolescent Substance Use: Internalizing and Externalizing Pathways,” was authored by Claudia Clinchard, Kirby Dieter Deckard, Brooks Casas, and Jianmin Kim Spoon.
