Social environmental impact on adolescent attachment and peer relational competence.

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Date
2019
Authors
Indala, Nancy Nasitaba
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The University of Zambia
Abstract
This study aimed at investigating the differences in attachment levels to the caregiver and to the differences in interpersonal relational competence between adolescents raised in the home environment and adolescents raised in orphanages. It was hypothesized that adolescents raised in orphanages would be less attached to their caregivers than adolescents raised in the home environment with regard to trust, communication and alienation. It was also hypothesized that adolescents raised in orphanages would have a lower interpersonal relational competence in comparison to adolescents raised in the home environment. In addition, attachment to the caregiver was expected to have a positive correlation to peer relational competence. Both the adolescents raised in the home environment and the orphanage-raised adolescents were from Lusaka. Stratified sampling technique was used to obtain the sample of 97 adolescents, 48 raised in orphanages and 49 raised in the home environment, between the ages 11 and 14 (M=12.27, S.D= 0.94). The Inventory of Parent Peer Attachment (IPPA) was administered to each participant. Significant differences were found between adolescents raised in orphanages and adolescents raised in the home environment with regard to their attachment to their respective caregivers. There were significant differences in trust in their caregiver between the two sets of adolescents t (97) -3.6, p= 0.05. As hypothesized, there were significant differences in interpersonal relational competence between adolescents raised in orphanages and adolescents raised in the home environment. Finally, a strong positive correlation between attachment to the caregiver and peer relational competence was found between alienation from the caregiver and alienation from peers r (72) .606, p < .01. Attachment bonds between adolescents and caregivers take place regardless of the rearing environment and peers can buffer the effects of harsh rearing environments. More research should be done on attachment in children under institutional care to stave off negative effects of institutional care in Zambia.
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Thesis of Master of Arts in Child and Adolescent Psychology.
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