Parenting and children's representation of interpersonal relations: foreign research review

• Main Author: Yaroshevskaya S.V.
• Format: Article
• Language: Russian
• Published: Moscow State University of Psychology and Education 2017-06-01
• Series: Современная зарубежная психология
• Subjects: mental representation; interpersonal relations; child-parent relationships; attachment theory; attribute-centric style; theory of mind
• Online Access: http://psyjournals.ru/files/86624/jmfp_2017_n_2_Yaroshevskaya.pdf

The article provides an overview of the Western empirical research dealing with various types of individual internal representations, emerging and/or functioning in the child-parent relationship. Representations are understood as forms of experience and self-images, images of others and interpersonal relationships. The review introduces the representations as parameters of attachment, characteristics of attributive style and models of the «psychic», and also as more sectional aspects of reflection of interpersonal interactions. Researches are systemized on the principle of consideration of links between representations of children and parents with personal characteristics, behavior practices, general well-being and with each other. In conclusion, the overview of the current state of events in the area is highlighted, the dominance of attachment theory is emphasized, the absence of uniformity in the study of different themes is singled out, the poorly studied theoretical and methodological difficulties are described.