Abstracts Category : Other

Using distance regulation for the study of siblingrelationship quality, romantic relationships, and interpersonal andintrapersonal factors

by Elizabeth Northup Palmer

The sibling bond is likely the longest, most resilientrelationship in ones life. Subsequently, the sibling relationshipis a strong predictor of outcomes across the lifespan, includingpositive intimate relationships, feelings of self-worth, and socialskills. The purpose of this dissertation was to use Bowen FamilySystems Theory (BFST) to examine individuals perception of theirsibling relationships and the connection with interpersonal andintrapersonal factors, and to explore the congruence of sibling andromantic relationship distance regulation. Online researchlistservs were used to recruit participants(<i>N</i>=476). A cross-sectional descriptive surveydesign was used to explore quantitative survey items. The LifespanSibling Relationship Scale (LSRS) was used to assess the siblingrelationship in childhood and adulthood. The Social ConnectednessScale-Revised (SCSR) and the Separation-Individuation Test ofAdolescence (SITA) were used to measure distance regulation.Interpersonal and intrapersonal factors included depression,general perceptions of health, and couple relationshipsatisfaction. BFST was used to explore four hypotheses: 1) Theclosest siblings will be same-sex dyads, with sisters being theclosest among all the dyads; 2) Siblings that are <= 2.5 yearsof age will have a closer relationships than those > 2.5 yearsapart in age; 3) Individuals perceptions of the siblingrelationship in childhood and adulthood are related; and 4) Thesibling relationship in childhood and adulthood are predictive ofinter/intrapersonal factors. In addition, three research questionswere explored: 1) Are there common characteristics of the selectedinfluential sibling for participants with more than one sibling?;2) What is the relationship between sibling and couple distanceregulation?; and 3) To what extent does sibling and couple distanceregulation mediate the influence of the sibling relationship oninter/intrapersonal factors?Correlations confirmed a significantrelationship between the sibling relationship in childhood andadulthood (<i>r</i>(476)=.45,<i>p</i><.001). A one-way ANOVA demonstrated sisterswere the closest on both the LSRS (<i>F</i>(3, 458)=7.87, <i>p</i><.001), and the SCSR(<i>F</i>(3, 458)=5.38, <i>p</i>=.001).There were not significant differences between siblings > or<= 2.5 years apart in age. The subsample of participants in aromantic relationship was used (<i>n</i>=338) to testthe conceptual model using structural equation modeling. First, adirect effects model assessed the influence of the adult andsibling relationship on depression, general perceptions of health,and couple relationship satisfaction. Results showed significantpaths from the child sibling relationship to depression(<i></i>=-.14, <i>p</i><.05) and couplerelationship satisfaction (<i></i>=.21,<i>p</i><.05). Then, sibling and couple distanceregulation were added as mediating variables to complete the model.Fit indices for the overall model were strong:<i>X</i>2(56)=76.41Advisors/Committee Members: Pratt, Keeley (Advisor).