Because adverse childhood and family of origin experiences may have implications for adult relationships, it is important to understand what can help buffer potential negative effects. The current study was designed to understand the relationship between childhood family of origin adversities, coming to terms with family of origin issues and events, and adult romantic relationship quality for African Americans (N = 1613). A path analysis was conducted using data from the RELATE assessment (see www.relate-institute.org). Results indicated that, taken together, coming to terms, self-esteem, and depression likely partially mediated the relationship between family of origin adversity and adult relationship quality. Results also suggested that if African Americans were able to come to terms, they reported less depression and higher levels of self-esteem. Clinicians may find it useful to focus on assisting African American individuals in coming to terms with childhood family of origin adversity as part of treatment for depression, self-esteem issues, and adult romantic relationship problems. Additional clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BGMYU2/oai:scholarsarchive.byu.edu:etd-8488 |
| Date | 01 June 2019 |
| Creators | Marshall, Kylee |
| Publisher | BYU ScholarsArchive |
| Source Sets | Brigham Young University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Theses and Dissertations |
| Rights | http://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/ |
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