The Power of Parental Bonds: Predicting Alexithymia and Psychological Distress in Young Adults

Abstract

The bond between parents and children has a profound impact on the emotional and psychological development of young adults. This is likely to lead to alexithymia and psychological suffering in Pakistanis whose personal and psychological well–being is largely associated with the nature of the family system. In such instances, parental negligence, combined with authoritarian styles, can lead to this outcome. This study's focus was to analyse the predictive role of the bonds between a parent and child in the area of stress, anxiety, depression, and alexithymia in young adults. Using a convenience sampling technique, this study employed a quantitative cross-sectional research design. The research participants were 183 adults, aged 18-30 years, 98 females and 85 males, participated from three different institutions located in Multan, Rawalpindi, and Islamabad. Participants completed the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21), and the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) for this study. Authoritarian factors in father bonding were a significant predictor of alexithymia (? = 0.44, SE = 0.29, p < 0.001, 95% CI = [0.35, 0.97]) and accounted for 20% of the variation (R² = 0.20, F(1, 177) = 12.66, p < 0.001). Parental bonding explained 37, 61, and 55% of the variance in depression (R² = .37, F (1,177) = 31.69, p < .001), anxiety (R² = .61, F (1,177) = 29.37, p < .001), and stress (R² = .55, F (1,177) = 27.69, p < .001) respectively. Furthermore, psychological distress i.e. depression, anxiety, and stress were associated positively with two parenting styles i.e. ambivalent and authoritarian. These findings reflect that parental bonding is a significant predictor of psychological distress as well as alexithymia among adults especially in the context of Pakistan. This suggests that the inappropriate nurturing and overprotection can contribute towards the emergence of maladaptive personality traits such as alexithymia and increase the adolescents’ susceptibility towards psychological distress.