| Abstract | Parentifikacija je proces u kojem dolazi do obrata uloga u odnosu roditelj – dijete te djeca preuzimaju uloge i odgovornosti prema roditeljima koje su razvojno neprikladne i opterećujuće. Postoje dvije vrste parentifikacije, instrumentalna i emocionalna. Instrumentalna parentifikacija odnosi se na djetetovo preuzimanje konkretnih funkcija poput održavanja kućanstva i kupnje namirnica, dok se emocionalna parentifikacija odnosi na procese u kojima dijete preuzima brigu za emocionalne potrebe roditelja, pružanje emocionalne podrške roditeljima te ublažavanje i rješavanje roditeljskih sukoba. Dosadašnja istraživanja pokazuju da se obje vrste parentifikacije pojavljuju u okolnostima poput obiteljskih ekonomskih teškoća, nasilja u obitelji, problema mentalnog zdravlja i ovisnosti roditelja. Također, istraživanja pokazuju da je parentifikacija, posebice emocionalna, povezana s internaliziranim problemima te da djevojke iskazuju više razine emocionalne parentifikacije nego mladići. Ipak, treba napomenuti da u Hrvatskoj niti jedno istraživanje dosad nije ispitivalo parentifikaciju u adolescenata. Polazeći od navedenoga postavljena tri cilja ovog rada. Prvi cilj je ispitati rodne razlike u doživljenom nasilju u obitelji, emocionalnoj parentifikaciji i internaliziranim problemima adolescenata. Drugi cilj je ispitati međusobni odnos doživljenog nasilja u obitelji, emocionalne parentifikacije i internaliziranih problema adolescenata te moderacijski učinak samopoštovanja na odnos emocionalne parentifikacije i internaliziranih problema. Treći cilj je ispitati međusobni odnos ekonomskih teškoća u obitelji, svakodnevnog roditeljskog stresa, emocionalne parentifikacije i internaliziranih problema adolescenata te moderacijski učinak samopoštovanja na odnos emocionalne parentifikacije i internaliziranih problema. Istraživanje je provedeno kao dio projekta „Međugeneracijski prijenos rizika za mentalno zdravlje adolescenata“ (IP-2020-02-5967) financiranog od Hrvatske zaklade za znanost. U istraživanju su sudjelovali učenici prvih razreda srednjih škola iz Sisačko-moslavačke, Brodsko-posavske i Karlovačke županije te njihovi roditelji. Za ispitivanje prvog i drugog cilja, uzorak čini 701 adolescent, a za ispitivanje trećeg cilja 378 adolescenata te njihove majke. Kao metode obrade podataka korišteni su t-test za ispitivanje rodnih razlika te strukturalno modeliranje za ispitivanje međusobnih odnosa ispitivanih varijabli. Rezultati pokazuju da djevojke češće doživljavaju psihičku agresiju, češće su izložene roditeljskim sukobima, iskazuju više razine emocionalne parentifikacije i internaliziranih problema nego mladići. Doživljena psihička agresija pozitivno je povezana s emocionalnom parentifikacijom, a
emocionalna parentifikacija je pozitivno povezana s internaliziranim problemima te ima potpuni medijacijski učinak između psihičke agresije i internaliziranih problema adolescenata. Nadalje, majčine percipirane ekonomske teškoće su povezane s emocionalnom parentifikacijom, a emocionalna parentifikacija ima potpuni medijacijski učinak između ekonomskih teškoća i internaliziranih problema adolescenata. Samopoštovanje nema statistički značajan učinak na odnos emocionalne parentifikacije i internaliziranih problema adolescenata. Istraživanje doprinosi razumijevanju u kojim okolnostima dolazi do parentifikacije i njenim posljedicama u adolescenata. Rezultati mogu posložiti stručnjacima koji rade s adolescentima i njihovim obiteljima. |
| Abstract (english) | Parentification is a process in which there is a reversal of roles in the parent-child relationship, with children assuming roles and responsibilities toward their parents that are developmentally inappropriate and burdensome. Two forms of parentification exist: instrumental and emotional. Instrumental parentification involves the child taking on concrete tasks, such as maintaining the household and purchasing groceries. In contrast, emotional parentification refers to situations where the child becomes responsible for addressing the emotional needs of the parents, providing emotional support, and mediating or resolving parental conflicts.
The phenomenon of parentification has been explained in the literature through several theoretical frameworks, including family systems theory, attachment theory, emotional security theory, and the family stress model. Existing research supports these theoretical assumptions, demonstrating that both types of parentification arises in contexts such as economic hardship, domestic violence, parental mental health issues, and substance abuse. Furthermore, studies indicate that parentification, especially emotional parentification, is associated with internalised problems in adolescents and that girls exhibit higher levels of parentification than boys. However, it is important to note that in Croatia, no research has yet been conducted to examine parentification among adolescents.
Therefore, three objectives have been established for this study. The first objective is to examine gender differences in experiences of domestic violence, emotional parentification, and internalised problems among adolescents. The second objective is to investigate the interrelationships between experiences of domestic violence, emotional parentification, and internalised problems in adolescents, as well as the moderating effect of self-esteem on the relationship between emotional parentification and internalised problems. The third objective is to explore the interrelationships between economic hardship in the family, daily parental stress, emotional parentification, and internalised problems in adolescents, along with the moderating effect of self-esteem on the relationship between emotional parentification and internalised problems.
Methods
The present PhD is part of a larger project entitled "Intergenerational Risk Transmission for Adolescent Mental Health" (IP-2020-02-5967), funded by the Croatian Science Foundation. The research sample was selected using a two-stage cluster sampling method, resulting in a study conducted on a sample of 701 adolescents and their parents from three counties in Croatia that were affected by the Homeland War. For the investigation of the first and second objectives, the sample consists of 701 adolescents, while for the investigation of the third objective, the sample includes 378 adolescents and their mothers.
The following measurement instruments were used for adolescents in this study: the Psychological Aggression subscale from the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scales (CTSPC-CA; Straus et al., 1998), a custom item to assess exposure to parental conflicts, items related to emotional parentification from the Parentification Questionnaire (PQ-Y; Godsall & Jurkovic, 1995), the general self-concept subscale from the Self-Description Questionnaire II (SDQ II; Marsh, 1992), and the depression and anxiety subscales from the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21; Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995).
For mothers, the following instruments were employed: the Perception of Family Financial Difficulties Questionnaire (Rajhvajn Bulat, Ajduković & Sušac, 2016), custom items to assess daily stress based on The Survey of Recent Life Experiences (Kohn & Macdonald, 1990), and the Everyday Stress and Experienced Stressors Questionnaire (Ajduković, Rajter & Sušac, 2011).
For data analysis, a t-test was used to examine gender differences, and structural equation modelling (SEM) was employed to explore the interrelationships among the studied variables.
Results
The results indicate that girls are more likely than boys to experience psychological aggression, are more frequently exposed to parental conflicts, and report higher levels of parentification and internalised problems. Experienced psychological aggression is positively associated with
emotional parentification, and parentification is positively correlated with internalised problems, serving as a complete mediator between psychological aggression and internalised problems in adolescents. Contrary to expectations, exposure to parental conflicts was not found to be associated with emotional parentification. Furthermore, mothers' perceived economic difficulties are linked to emotional parentification, with emotional parentification acting as a complete mediator between economic hardship and internalised problems in adolescents. However, daily maternal stress is not associated with emotional parentification. Self-esteem does not have a statistically significant effect on the relationship between emotional parentification and internalised problems in adolescents, which is contrary to the initial hypothesis.
Conclusion
The results indicate that emotional parentification can have negative consequences for adolescent mental health, underscoring the importance of future research on parentification and the circumstances under which it occurs. This study shows that experienced psychological aggression and family economic difficulties can predict emotional parentification in adolescents, which is consistent with previous research. However, the anticipated association between exposure to parental conflicts and emotional parentification was not confirmed. This may be due to the method used to assess parental conflicts, which did not examine the specific characteristics of these conflicts that could be important predictors of emotional parentification. Additionally, self-esteem did not moderate the relationship between emotional parentification and internalised problems, suggesting that self-esteem may not serve as a protective factor against adolescents' internalised problems. Future research should explore other potential protective factors against internalised problems resulting from emotional parentification.
This research highlights the importance of recognising the roles children assume within their families and designing interventions accordingly. Furthermore, it is crucial to ensure formal sources of social support for families and adolescents in adverse situations to reduce the developmentally inappropriate support that children may provide to their parents. Given that the results show girls are more likely than boys to be exposed to psychological aggression, parental conflicts, and exhibit higher levels of emotional parentification and internalised problems, it is
essential to develop gender-sensitive interventions. Integrated approaches to providing support to families are vital, facilitating the adoption of appropriate parenting practices and alleviating economic difficulties within the family. |
