Parental recall, attachment relating and self-attacking/self-reassurance: their relationship with depression.
OBJECTIVE
When things go wrong for people they can become self-critical or focus on positive, reassuring aspects of the self. This study explored the relationship between forms of self-criticism and self-reassurance, recall of parental experiences and attachment style in relation to depressed symptoms in students.


METHODS
A sample of 197 undergraduate students from the UK and Canada completed self-report questionnaires measuring recall of parental styles, attachment, forms of self-criticism, self-reassurance, and depression symptoms.


RESULTS
Recall of parents as rejecting and overprotecting was significantly related to both inadequacy and self-hating self-criticism. In contrast, parental warmth was negatively correlated with these forms of self-criticism. In addition, when things go wrong for the person, recall of parental warmth was associated with the ability to be self-reassuring. A mediator analysis suggested that (I) the impact of recall of negative parenting on depression is mediated through the forms of self-criticism and (2) the effect of parental warmth on depression was mediated by the ability to be self-reassuring.


CONCLUSIONS
The impacts of negative parenting styles may translate into vulnerabilities to depression via the way children (and later adults) develop their self-to-self relating (e.g. as self-critical versus self-reassuring). Hence, there is a need for further research on the link between attachment experiences, recall of parental rejection/warmth and their relationship to internal, self-evaluative and affect systems in creating vulnerabilities to psychopathology.
Irons
C
C
Mental Health Research Unit, Kingsway Hospital, Derby, UK.
Gilbert
P
P
Baldwin
M W
MW
Baccus
J R
JR
Palmer
M
M
D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D002648:Child; D002668:Child Rearing; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D009769:Object Attachment; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012059:Rejection, Psychology; D012307:Risk Factors; D012648:Self Care / Q000523:psychology*; D012649:Self Concept; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires