The Relationship Between Attachment to Parents and Psychological Separation in College Students

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between attachment to parents and psychological separation in college students. Three hundred sixty-eight undergraduate students completed the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (Armsden & Greenberg, 1987) and the Psychological Separation Inventory (Hoffman, 1984). Results suggest an association with the attachment variables of low trust and high positive communication and psychological separation from parents, with the exception of independence from conflict, for both men and women. For men to psychologically separate, it was also important to have low alienation from fathers. Implications of the results are discussed.