Typologies of family functioning: From identity development to emotional distress in adolescence and emerging adulthood

Ana Prioste, Petra Tavares, Eunice Magalhães

Abstract


The family functioning contributes differently to psychological adjustment, according to the development stages and the tasks that underlie them. Through a quantitative cross-sectional design, and using a sample of 387 participants aged between 15 and 25 years (M=20.06, SD=3.21), this study aimed to: identify the typologies of family functioning, from the cohesion and conflict dimensions; and to analyse the association between the typologies of family functioning, the identity development processes, the developmental stage (adolescence and emerging adulthood) and the emotional distress. Five typologies of family functioning were identified, corresponding to: Cohesive, Disengaged, Balanced, Conflicting and Enmeshed. Taking into account the literature, the participants were divided into groups, according to age (adolescents and emerging adults) and the level of emotional distress (with and without emotional distress). The results show statistically significant associations between the typologies of family functioning, the developmental stage, the processes of identity development and the groups with and without emotional distress. Specifically, the results indicate that emerging adults perceive the functioning of their families as more Cohesive or Enmeshed, compared with the adolescents; and that the group with emotional distress perceived, for the most part, the functioning of their family as Enmeshed. The implications for the practice and the literature in the areas of Developmental Psychopathology and Family Psychology are discussed.

Keywords


Adolescence, Emerging adulthood, Family functioning, Identity development, Emotional distress.

References


Alarcão, M. (2000). (Des)Equílibrios Familiares (1ª Ed.). Coimbra: Quarteto.

Andrade, C. (2016). Maturidade psicológica e independência financeira: um estudo com adultos emergentes universitários. Revista de Estudios e Investigación en Psicología y Educación, 3(1), 28-35. doi:10.17979/reipe.2016.3.1.1457

Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-580. doi:10.1037//0003-066X.55.5.469

Benvenuti, M., Mazzoni, E., & Piobbico, G. (2016). Being Online in Emerging Adulthood: Between Problematic or Functional. In. M., Wright (Serie Ed.), Identity, Sexuality, and Relationships among Emerging Adults in the Digital Age (pp. 226-245). United States of America: IGI Global.

Beyers, W., & Luyckx, K. (2016). Ruminative exploration and reconsideration of commitment as risk factors for suboptimal identity development in adolescence and emerging adulthood. Journal of Adolescence, 47, 169-178. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2015.10.018

Brandão, T., Saraiva, L., & Matos, P. M. (2012). O prolongamento da transição para a idade adulta e o conceito de adultez emergente: Especificidades do contexto português e brasileiro. Análise Psicológica, 30(3), 301-313.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1986). Ecology of the family as a context for human development: Research perspectives. Developmental Psychology, 22(6), 723-742. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.22.6.723

Canavarro, M. C. (1999). Inventário de Sintomas Psicopatológicos-BSI. In M., Simões, M., Gonçalves & L. S., Almeida (Series Eds.), Testes e Provas Psicológicas em Portugal (Vol. 2, pp. 1-27). Braga: APPORT/SHO.

Canavarro, M. C. (2007). Inventário de Sintomas Psicopatológicos: Uma revisão crítica dos estudos realizados em Portugal. In M., Simões, C., Machado, M., Gonçalves, & L., Almeida (Series Eds.), Avaliação psicológica: Instrumentos validados para a população Portuguesa (vol. III, pp. 305-330). Coimbra: Quarteto Editora.

Cicchetti, D., & Cohen, D. J. (2006). Developmental Psychopathology. Volume 3: Risk, Disorder and Adaptation (pp. 129-201). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Crowther, J. H., Kichler, J. C., Sherwood, N. E., & Kuhnert, M. E. (2002). The role of familial factors in bulimia nervosa. Eating Disorders, 10(2), 141-151.

Cruz, D., Narciso, I., Pereira, C. R., & Sampaio, D. (2014). Risk trajectories of self-destructiveness in adolescence: Family core influences. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23(7), 1172-1181. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9777-3

Cummings, E. M., Davies, P.T., & Campbell, S. B. (2000). Developmental Psychopathology and Family Process – Theory, Research and Clinical Implications. New York: The Guilford Press.

Cusimano, A. M., & Riggs, S. A. (2013). Perceptions of interparental conflict, romantic attachment, and psychological distress in college students. Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice, 2(1), 45-59. doi:10.1037/a0031657

Ferreira, S., Pedro, M., & Francisco, R. (2015). “Entre marido e mulher mete a crise a colher”: A relação entre pressão económica, conflito e satisfação conjugal. Psicologia, 29(1), 11–22.

Field, A. (2009). Discovering statistics using SPSS (3ª Ed). London: Sage Publications.

Francisco, R. (2015). Inventário do Clima Familiar – versão para investigação. Faculdade de Ciências Humanas, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Lisboa.

Francisco, R., Monteiro, A, Pinto, J. & Gaspar, A. (2016). Reflexões sobre a família contemporânea. Estudo empírico com estudantes da Universidade Católica Portuguesa. In H. Pinto, & J. Sardica (Series Eds), Família: Essência e Multidisciplinaridade (pp. 355-394). Lisboa: Universidade Católica Editora.

Halloran, E. C., Ross, G. J., & Carey, M. P. (2002). The relationship of adolescent personality and family environment to psychiatric diagnosis. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 32(3), 201-216. doi:10.1023/A:1017904722137

Hartigan, J. A., & Wong, M. A. (1979). Algorithm AS 136: A K-Means Clustering Algorithm. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, Series C, 28, 100–108.

Inguglia, C., Ingoglia, S., Liga, F., Coco, A. L., & Cricchio, M. G. L. (2015). Autonomy and relatedness in adolescence and emerging adulthood: Relationships with parental support and psychological distress. Journal of Adult Development, 22(1), 1-13. doi:10.1007/s10804-014-9196-8

Jablonski, J., & Martino, S. D. (2013). A qualitative exploration of emerging adults’ and parents’ perspectives on communicating adulthood status. The Qualitative Report, 18(37), 1-12.

Klimstra, T., Hale III, W., Raaijmakers, Q., Branje, S., & Meeus, W. (2010). Identity formation in adolescence: Change or stability?. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39(2), 150-162. doi:10.1007/s10964-009-9401-4

Luyckx, K., Goossens, L., Soenens, B., & Beyers, W. (2006). Unpacking commitment and exploration: Preliminary validation of an integrative model of late adolescent identity formation. Journal of Adolescence, 29(3), 361-378. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2005.03.008

Luyckx, K., Klimstra, T. A., Duriez, B., Van Petegem, S., & Beyers, W. (2013). Personal identity processes from adolescence through the late 20s: Age trends, functionality, and depressive symptoms. Social Development, 22(4), 701-721. doi:10.1111/sode.12027

Luyckx, K., Schwartz, S. J., Berzonsky, M. D., Soenens, B., Vansteenkiste, M., Smits, I., & Goossens, L. (2008). Capturing ruminative exploration: Extending the four-dimensional model of identity formation in late adolescence. Journal of Research in Personality, 42(1), 58-82. doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2007.04.004

Luyckx, K., & Robitschek, C. (2014). Personal growth initiative and identity formation in adolescence through young adulthood: Mediating processes on the pathway to well-being. Journal of Adolescence, 37(7), 973-981. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2014.07.009.

Matheis, S., & Adams, G. R. (2004). Family climate and identity style during late adolescence. Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research, 4(1), 77-95. doi:10.1207/S1532706XID0401_5.

Meeus, W., Van De Schoot, R., Keijsers, L., Schwartz, S. J., & Branje, S. (2010). On the progression and stability of adolescent identity formation: A five wave longitudinal study in early-to-middle and middle-to-late adolescence. Child Development, 81(5), 1565-1581. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01492.x.

Mendonça, M., Andrade, C., & Fontaine, A. (2009). Transição para a idade adulta e adultez emergente: Adaptação do Questionário de Marcadores da Adultez junto de jovens portugueses. Psychologica, 51, 147-168.

Minuchin, S., Baker, L., Rosman, B. L., Liebman, R., Milman, L., & Todd, T. C. (1975). A conceptual model of psychosomatic illness in children: Family organization and family therapy. Archives of General Psychiatry, 32(8), 1031-1038. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1975.01760260095008.

Nichols, M., & Schwartz, R. (2004). Structural Family Therapy. In M., Nichols & R., Schwartz (Series Eds.), Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods (6ª Ed., pp. 176-203). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Olson, D. H., Sprenkle, D. H., & Russell, C. S. (1979). Circumplex model of marital and family systems: Cohesion and adaptability dimensions, family types, and clinical applications. Family Process, 18(1), 3-28. doi:10.1111/j.1545-5300.1979.00003.x

Olson, D. H. (2000). Circumplex model of marital and family systems. Journal of Family Therapy, 22(2), 144-167. doi:10.1111/1467-6427.00144.

Organização Mundial de Saúde (1997). Adolescence the critical phase: the challenges and the potential. Retirado de http://www.searo.who.int/entity/child_adolescent/documents/ adolescence_critical_phase.pdf?ua=1, a 1 de agosto de 2017.

Prioste, A., Lugar, A., Paulino, P., & Jongenelen, I. (2016). Escala das Dimensões do Desenvolvimento da Identidade – versão portuguesa para investigação. Escola de Psicologia, Universidade Lusófona de Humanidades e Tecnologias, Lisboa.

Prioste, A., Narciso, I., Gonçalves, M., & Pereira, C. (2015). Family relationships and parenting practices: A pathway to adolescents’ values? Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(11), 3258-3267. doi:10.1007/s10826-015-0129-3

Relvas, A. P. (2006). O ciclo vital da família – Perspectiva Sistémica (4ª Ed.). Porto: Edições Afrontamento.

Riggs, S. A., & Han, G. (2009). Predictors of anxiety and depression in emerging adulthood. Journal of Adult Development, 16(1), 39-52. doi:10.1007/s10804-009-9051-5

Sandhu, D., Singh, B., Tung, S., & Kundra, N. (2012). Adolescent identity formation, psychological well-being, and parental attitudes. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research, 27(1), 89-105.

Schulenberg, J. E., Sameroff, A. J., & Cicchetti, D. (2004). The transition to adulthood as a critical juncture in the course of psychopathology and mental health. Development and Psychopathology, 16(4), 799-806. doi:10.1017/S0954579404040015

Schwartz, S. J., Hardy, S. A., Zamboanga, B. L., Meca, A., Waterman, A. S., Picariello, S., ... & Roberts, S. E. (2015). Identity in young adulthood: Links with mental health and risky behavior. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 36, 39-52. doi:10.1016/j.appdev.2014.10.001

Sica, L. S., Sestito, L. A., & Ragozini, G. (2014). Identity coping in the first years of university: Identity diffusion, adjustment and identity distress. Journal of Adult Development, 21(3), 159-172. doi:10.1007/s10804-014-9188-8

Sturge-Apple, M., Davies, P. T., & Cummings, E. M. (2010). Typologies of family functioning and children’s adjustment during the early school years. Child Development, 81(4), 1320-1335. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01471.x

Stocker, C. M., Richmond, M. K., Rhoades, G. K., & Kiang, L. (2007). Family emotional processes and adolescents' adjustment. Social Development, 16(2), 310-325. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2007.00386.x

Teodoro, M. L. M., Allgayer, M., & Land, B. (2009). Desenvolvimento e validade fatorial do inventário do clima familiar (ICF) para adolescentes. Psicologia: Teoria e Prática, 11(3), 27-39.

Vignoles, V. L., Schwartz, S. J., & Luyckx, K. (2011). Introduction: Toward an integrative view of identity. In S. J., Schwartz, K., Luyckx, & V. L., Vignoles (Series Eds.), Handbook of identity theory and research (pp. 1-27). New York: Springer.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.14417/ap.1534

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


Nº ERC: 107494 | ISSN (in print): 0870-8231 | ISSN (online): 1646-6020 | Copyright © ISPA - CRL, 2012 | Rua Jardim do Tabaco, 34, 1149-041 Lisboa | NIF: 501313672 | The portal and metadata are licensed under the license Creative Commons CC BY-NC