青年期後期から成人期初期にかけての母娘関係

抄録

This study aimed to show developmental changes of mother-daughter relationships between late adolescence and early adulthood, and also to examine whether or not mother-daughter relationships would be different when they lived together or apart. Questions regarding mother-daughter relationships were asked to three participant groups: undergraduate students, unmarried working individuals, and mothers with small children. Factor analysis identified five factors: support for the mother, past confrontations and conflicts, control by the mother, reliance on the mother, and dependence on the mother. Analysis of variance with two factors, life stage and living together or apart, indicated the following: (1) as a daughter grew older, control by the mother and dependence on the mother decreased while support for the mother increased, and (2) compared to the daughters who lived apart from their mothers, control by the mother and dependence on the mother were stronger for those who lived with their mothers, and the difference was particularly significant for working individuals in adulthood and married individuals. Based on these findings, the paper suggested how adult Japanese females continue to be physically as well as mentally dependent on their mothers by living with them, even after graduating from school and becoming economically independent.