Emotional Availability of Parents and Psychological Health: What Does Mediate This Relationship?

Abstract

The relationship and interaction between a parent and child is of an ever-changing nature. In the first years of the child, parents are more supportive of the child’s development and guide the changes that take place. When adolescence ends and child becomes an adult, parent–child relationship takes on a different pattern in which the relation is more egalitarian. Despite this changing nature, research findings demonstrate that children who continue to receive emotional support from their parents, feel attached to them and care about their contributions and support. Thus, it becomes important to evaluate how certain parental properties affect psychological health within this changing relationship structure. From this point of view, this study examines the mediator role of emotion regulation skills, interpersonal relationship styles, and perceived social support on the relationship between parental emotional availability and general psychological health of individuals aged 16–25 who still live with their parents. It has been found that difficulty in emotion regulation, interpersonal relationship style, and social support has complete mediation effect on the relationship between both maternal and paternal emotional availability and psychological health.

Full text

Vol.:(0123456789)
1 3
J Adult Dev (2018) 25:37–47
DOI 10.1007/s10804-017-9273-x
Emotional Availability ofParents andPsychological Health: What
Does Mediate This Relationship?
GözdeGökçe1· BanuYılmaz2
Published online: 13 September 2017
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2017
Keywords Emotional availability· Emotion regulation·
Interpersonal relationship style· Social support·
Psychological health
Introduction
Relationships that family members establish with one
another and the effects of those relationships on different
periods of development have been frequently addressed in
the related literature due to the significance that the family,
the first institution an individual encounters in the process
of socialization, carries for the child. Upon examining this
literature, it can be seen that there is an agreement regarding
the effect of family environment on the child’s social and
emotional development. Nevertheless, studies concerning
the effect of parents’ existing characteristics on the emo-
tional and behavioral functionality of an adult child have
been relatively sparse (e.g., Lee and Gotlib 1991; Lum and
Phares 2005).
Especially studies that are grounded on the effect of fam-
ily in adult sample in Turkey focus primarily on the early-
period interactions or family functionality. But, studies
regarding culture-specific family models (İmamoğlu 2003,
1998; Kağıtçıbaşı 2000; Karadayı 1998) demonstrate that
emotional bond among family members is sustained through
culture of dependence and relationality. Even in Western
societies where achieving autonomy is encouraged through
an emphasis on individuality, there are studies showing that
parents’ support for their children continues well into adult-
hood (e.g., Millward 1998; Vassallo etal. 2009; Veevers and
Mitchell 1998).
The attachment that is sustained on various levels among
family members assumes an ever-changing structure with
regard to parent–child relation. In the first years of the child,
Abstract The relationship and interaction between a
parent and child is of an ever-changing nature. In the first
years of the child, parents are more supportive of the child’s
development and guide the changes that take place. When
adolescence ends and child becomes an adult, parent–child
relationship takes on a different pattern in which the relation
is more egalitarian. Despite this changing nature, research
findings demonstrate that children who continue to receive
emotional support from their parents, feel attached to them
and care about their contributions and support. Thus, it
becomes important to evaluate how certain parental proper-
ties affect psychological health within this changing relation-
ship structure. From this point of view, this study examines
the mediator role of emotion regulation skills, interpersonal
relationship styles, and perceived social support on the rela-
tionship between parental emotional availability and general
psychological health of individuals aged 16–25 who still live
with their parents. It has been found that difficulty in emo-
tion regulation, interpersonal relationship style, and social
support has complete mediation effect on the relationship
between both maternal and paternal emotional availability
and psychological health.
This article is based on a part of Master’s Thesis of Gözde
Gökçe.
* Banu Yılmaz
bnylmz@gmail.com
Gözde Gökçe
ggokce@ankara.edu.tr
1 Department ofPsychology, Faculty ofLetters, Ankara
University, Ankara, Turkey
2 Ankara, Turkey

38 G.Gökçe, B.Yılmaz
1 3
parents are more supportive of the child’s development and
guide the changes that take place. When adolescence ends
and child becomes an adult, parent–child relationship takes
on a different pattern in which the relation is more egali-
tarian and both of the parties mutually support each other
reflective of a relation between two adults (Birditt etal.
2008).
Culture-specific family interaction patterns and literature
findings demonstrating the existence of family support in
adulthood suggest that examining the existing parental char-
acteristics that may affect the psychological health of the
adult child, not only in the early developmental period but
also in the following periods, would prove useful. Emotional
availability is one of the concepts that need to be addressed
within this context. It determines the quality of relation
between a parent and child. Also considered a significant
component in reflecting a healthy relation between a par-
ent and child, emotional availability essentially refers to an
emotional state of ‘being there’ rather than a physical exist-
ence (Biringen and Robinson 1991; Lum and Phrase 2005).
As a concept, emotional availability has often been studied
with a focus on the mother, as she is the prime caregiver
during infancy and childhood; but, there are studies indicat-
ing that emotional availability is closely related to a child’s
psychological health, adaptive skills, and functionality (e.g.,
Easterbrooks etal. 2012; Lee and Gotlib 1991; Steinberg
and Davila 2008).
Grounded on the attachment theory, emotional availabil-
ity focuses on issues such as family responses, sensitivity,
and emotional participation (Biringen 2000). In the related
literature, the concept of emotional availability has often
been addressed in the context of parent–child interactions
during infancy and early childhood. The concept refers to
the dual characteristic of this interaction and is addressed
dyadically with Emotional Availability Scales. Constitut-
ing a significant aspect of each parent’s interaction with the
child, emotional availability is predicted to result in differ-
ent consequences in accordance with parents’ gender. For
example, Lum and Phares’ study (2005) with children and
adolescents point out that the relation between each parent’s
emotional availability and child functionality is significant;
but, the relation between maternal emotional availability and
child functionality has been observed to be stronger than
the relationship between paternal emotional availability and
child functionality.
Emotional availability of parents is a quality that exists
under all circumstances (Lum and Phares 2005). The oppo-
site of emotional availability is emotional unavailability.
Emotional unavailability is considered to be prominent espe-
cially when mother is physically there, but not ‘accessible’
to the child (Aviezer etal. 2003; Filed 1994).The fact that
parent–child interactions with a lower level of emotional
availability, in other words, emotional interactions that do
not satisfy emotional and developmental needs of the child
and are characterized by negativity and inadequacy may lead
to psychopathology have been documented in the literature
(e.g., Easterbrooks etal. 2000; Lee and Gotlib 1991; Stein-
berg and Davila 2008).
Attachment theory explains the interaction between a par-
ent and child, and provides a basis for emotional availability.
According to the attachment theory’s principle regarding
psychopathological development, lack of maternal emo-
tional availability jeopardizes both the interaction between
parent–child and also the healthy emotional and behavioral
organization of the child (Cicchetti 1993; Cicchetti and Toth
2009). Thus, studies concerning the emotional availability of
parents or parental characteristics and behaviors related to
the emotional availability reveal that these characteristics are
associated with the externalized (e.g., delinquent behaviors,
aggression, poor impulse control) and internalized (with-
drawal, anxiety, psychosomatic symptoms) behavioral prob-
lems (Bosco etal. 2003), depressive symptoms and interper-
sonal difficulties (Gomez and McLaren 2006; Simons etal.
1994; Steinberg and Davila 2008), and perceived social sup-
port from others (e.g., Scherer etal. 1996). This literature
indicates the influence of parental emotional availability on
various aspects of child’s affective and behavioral domains.
Hence, it is considered that factors such as variables
related to emotion regulation and interpersonal relationships
capable of informing emotional and behavioral organization
of child may have an impact on the relationship between
parental emotional availability and psychopathology. Stud-
ies on these relationships show that accepting and support-
ing parental attitudes have higher correlations with adaptive
emotion regulation skills (Eisenberg etal. 1998). Attachment
figures who are emotionally available and supportive con-
tribute to the development of adaptive emotion regulation
skills both in real terms and symbolically through enhancing
feelings of security (Mikulincer and Shaver 2012). Further-
more, it is also suggested that current interactions with par-
ents would affect the interpersonal relationships of the indi-
vidual through mental representations (Elicker etal. 1992).
Considering this fact, this study examines the mediator
role of emotion regulation skills, interpersonal relation-
ship styles, and perceived social support on the relationship
between parental emotional availability and general psycho-
logical health of individuals aged between 16 and 25 who
still live with their parents. The rationale behind the selec-
tion of this age group lies on the fact that physical separation
from parents (living at one’s own place) without an accepted
reason (e.g., marriage, working in another city) is not a norm
in Turkey unlike western cultures. This fact brings about the
transmission of parent–child bond beyond emotional support
which may cause a delay in the development of individua-
tion and autonomy which are the characteristics of adult-
hood. With this study, it will be possible to examine the

39Emotional Availability ofParents andPsychological Health: What Does Mediate This…
1 3
parental influences on psychological health in late adoles-
cence and adulthood in terms of both mothers’ and fathers’
characteristics. Besides, it may help to understand which
areas of the child may be associated with parental traits that
have the potential to affect the child’s psychological health
during adulthood. Examining the possible effects of parental
emotional availability and the possible variables that have a
role in these effects is considered to contribute to protective
and preventive mental health practices, which place family
at the center and provide data regarding behavioral practices
related to emotional care and support that the families show
in mental health studies. Because parents remain influential
in children’s life, prevention and treatment programs aiming
at increasing parental emotional availability may be effective
in reducing the risk of psychopathology for adolescents and
for adults who still live with their parents. In families where
parental emotional availability is low because of marital
conflicts, divorce, or presence of mental illness in parent(s),
it will contribute to identify the areas that can intervene in
adult child with psychological distress. In addition, the infor-
mation and findings acquired about this issue could be used
to enhance the quality of interpersonal relations that target
the emotionally unavailable individuals.
Method
Sample
Individuals aged 16–25years who live in one of the four
big cities of Turkey (Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir, Bolu) with
their parents constitute the sample of this research. The con-
venient sampling technique was used, and the participation
was on voluntary basis. The analyses have been conducted
through responses of 380 participants after the data cleans-
ing process to eliminate any errors. Socio-demographic char-
acteristics of participants are shown in Table1.
Measures
Lum Emotional Availability ofParents (LEAP)
Developed by Lum and Phares (2005) with a consideration
regarding participants’ mothers and fathers, the scale con-
sists of 15-item that are rated using a 6-point Likert scale,
1 (never) to 6 (always). In Lum and Phares’ study, the scale
has been found to demonstrate single factorial structure
described as parental emotional availability. The results of
the same study indicate that Cronbach’s alpha coefficients
for non-clinical sample are .96 for the mother form and .97
for father form; for clinical sample it is .92 for the mother
form, and .93 for the father form. Test–retest reliability
is indicated to be .92 for the mother form and .85 for the
father form.
The adaptation of the scale into Turkish has been car-
ried out within the scope of this study. Researchers have
translated the scale items individually; two arbiters, a
clinical and a social psychologist have reviewed the differ-
ently expressed items and put the scale into its final form.
Factor structure of the scale has been evaluated with the
intent of determining psychometric properties of Turkish
form. In compliance with the original form, it has been
found that both maternal and paternal emotional avail-
ability forms have single factorial structure. In the analysis
that has been conducted to learn about the reliability of
the scale, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient has been found to
be .95 for mother form, and .97 for father form. Item-test
correlation of the scale on the mother form ranged from
.65 to .83, and .76 to .86 on the father form. Higher scores
on the mother and father forms of the scale are also asso-
ciated with higher rates of parental emotional availability
depending on the form. Also, higher scores on the scale
reflect the greater parental emotional availability.
Table 1 Demographic characteristics of sample and their parents
N = 380 %
Sex
Woman 245 64.5
Man 135 35.5
Age
16–18 182 47.9
18–25 198 52.1
Education
Elementary school 1 .2
High school student or grad 198 52.1
College student, grad, or postgraduate 181 47.7
Education of mother
Elementary school or under 164 53.1
High school 114 30.0
College or postgraduate 102 26.9
Education of father
Elementary school or under 92 24.2
High school 99 26.1
College or postgraduate 189 49.7
Mother and father is
Together 355 93.4
Separate 24 6.3
Relationship between mother and father
Bad 29 7.6
Average 66 17.4
Good 285 75.0

40 G.Gökçe, B.Yılmaz
1 3
Difficulties inEmotion Regulation Scale (DERS)
Developed by Gratz and Roemer (2004), the scale consists
of 36-item that are rated using a 5-point Likert scale. It
has six subscales: awareness (lack of awareness regarding
emotional responses), clarity (not understanding emotional
responses), non-acceptance (non-acceptance of emotional
responses), strategies (limited access to emotion regulation
strategies perceived as effective), impulse (difficulty control-
ling impulses while experiencing negative emotions), and
goals (difficulties engaging in goal directed behavior while
experiencing negative emotions). In the process of adapting
the scale into Turkish and assessing its validity and reliabil-
ity (Rugancı 2008), the tenth item of the original scale has
been replaced with another item of the same content since
the item in question had very low correlation (r = .06) with
the entire scale. In this way, factor number and structure
were rendered the same with the original form of the scale
and structure validity was ensured. During the adaptation
process, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the scale was .94
and for the subscales it ranged from .90 to .75 (Rugancı
2008). Higher scores on the scale suggest greater problems
with emotion regulation.
Interpersonal Relationship Styles Scale (IRSS)
This scale has been prepared by Şahin etal. (1994) who were
inspired by the list of behaviors in the manual of a video
program called ‘Stress Management: Positive Strategy.’
It consists of 31-item that are rated using a 4-point Likert
scale. Higher scores on the scale, which is a two-dimen-
sional structure (nourishing and inhibitory styles), reflect a
positive style in interpersonal relationships. In the reliability
analyses, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was .79, and split half
reliability coefficient was .63 (Şahin etal. 1994).
Multidimensional Scale ofPerceived Social Support
(MSPSS)
Developed by Zimet etal. (1988), the scale consists of
12-item that are rated using a 7-point Likert scale. Family,
friends, and a significant other constitute the three subscales
that have been identified as the source of perceived social
support. While adapting the scale into Turkish and assessing
its validity and reliability (Eker etal. 2001), it has been made
clear that the term ‘significant other’ is not used prevalently
in the context of Turkey. Hence, this subscale has been rear-
ranged/renamed as ‘someone other than a family member or
friends’ (e.g., a date, fiancée, relative, neighbor, physician).
Factor number and structure were supported in the adapta-
tion process. Cronbach’s alpha coefficient that was obtained
from different samples ranges from .80 to .95 (Eker etal.
2001) and in this study, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the
scale was .89.
Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI)
Developed by Derogatis (1992) so as to assess the general
psychological health, the test consists of 53-item that uses
the 5-point Likert scale. Turkish adaptation of the scale has
been carried out through adult (Şahin and Durak 1994) and
adolescent (Şahin etal. 2002) samples. Anxiety, depression,
negative self concept, somatization, and hostility are the five
subscales of BSI. Internal consistency coefficients for adult
sampling range from .75 to .87, and .70 to .88 for adolescent
sampling. Higher scores on the scale reflect higher levels of
psychological symptoms in individuals.
Procedure
Before starting to carry out the study, Ethical Committee
of Ankara University has confirmed the research’s compli-
ance with ethical principles. Alongside the standard scales,
the informed consent section at the beginning of the form
emphasizes the goal of the research and states that participat-
ing in the study is on a voluntary basis. It is also pointed out
that there will not be individual evaluations; the responses
will be evaluated in a collective manner.
Findings
First, independent samples t-tests were conducted to com-
pare maternal and paternal emotional availability for 16–18
and 18–25 age groups. According to the independent sam-
ples t-test result, the mean for maternal emotional avail-
ability did not differ for 16–18 (M = 74.86; SD = 13.94) and
18–25 (M = 76.23; SD = 15.13) age g roups, t(378) = −.919,
p > .05. Similarly, the mean for paternal emotional avail-
ability did not differ for 16–18 (M = 66.56; SD = 19.50) and
18–25 (M = 65.06; SD = 20.76) age groups, t(378) = .727,
p > .05.
In accordance with the main goal of the study, mediator
role of emotion regulation, interpersonal relationship style,
and perceived social support on the relationship between
parental emotional availability and psychological health
of adult children has been explored through the regression
analyses suggested by Baron and Kenny (1986). In this sug-
gested method, a variable has to fulfill four conditions for
being a mediator variable. The conditions are as follows:
(a) independent variable should significantly predict the
dependent variable; (b) independent variable should sig-
nificantly predict the mediator variable; (c) the mediator
variable should predict the dependent variable, which is

41Emotional Availability ofParents andPsychological Health: What Does Mediate This…
1 3
the predicted variable; (d) when the independent variable,
the predictor variable, and the mediator variable enter into
analysis simultaneously, the significant relationship between
the dependent and independent variable should be no more
significant or the relation between them should decrease.
When the mediator variable enters into analysis, if the rela-
tionship between the dependent and independent variables
is no more significant, then it is complete mediation; if the
relationship just decreases, it is partial mediation.
In line with these steps, the effect of indirect mediation
and whether or not it is statistically different from zero in
a significant way have been evaluated via Bootstrapping
method suggested by Preacher and Hayes (2008). Bootstrap-
ping is a non-parametric method that relies on resampling
procedure repeated thousands of times (e.g., 1000, 5000
times) with replacement. Indirect mediator effect is com-
puted for each resampling. The significance of the mediation
effect after resampling is determined in accordance with the
computation of typical confidence interval and whether or
not there is zero within this interval. Non-existence of zero
within confidence interval indicates that indirect effect is
different from zero, hence significant.
Since the indirect effects in question are determined in
line with a chain of regression analyses, relations among the
research variables have been first evaluated through correla-
tion analysis. Results of Pearson Product-Moment Correla-
tion Analysis are included in Table2.
As can be seen in Table2, the variables that have been
addressed in the research are significantly related to each
other in the expected direction. Additionally, correlations
between subscales and total scores of main variables reflect
a significant relationship between subscales and total
scores in the expected direction apart from the relationship
between inhibitory style and parental emotional availabil-
ity, which has been found to be insignificant. Following
the examination of variables’ relationship with each other
through correlation analysis, the mediator role of difficulty
in emotion regulation, interpersonal relationship style, and
perceived social support on the relationship between paren-
tal emotional availability and psychological health has been
explored.
Findings regarding the mediator role of variables in ques-
tion on the relationship between maternal emotional avail-
ability and general psychological well-being can be seen in
Fig.1.
Table 2 Intercorrelations the
variables (N = 380)
DERS difficulties in emotion regulation scale, IRSS interpersonal relationship styles scale, MSPSS multidi-
mensional scale of perceived social support, BSI brief symptom inventory
**p < .01
Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6
1. Emotional
availability of
mother
–
2. Emotional
availability of
father
.54** –
3. DERS −.25** −.21** –
4. IRSS .24** .17** −.42** –
5. MSPSS .44** .43** −.24** .30** –
6. BSI −.28** −.26** .65** −.40** −.30** –
M75.58 65.78 88.45 64.40 61.94 56.57
SD 14.56 20.16 21.25 9.36 14.64 33.43
-.65***(-.16)
-.23*
-.43**
.88***
.44***
.15***
-.37***
General
Psychological
Health
Emotional
Availability of
Mother
*
p < .05,
**
p < .01,
***
p < .001
Fig. 1 Mediation roles of difficulty in emotion regulation, interper-
sonal relationship styles, and multidimensional perceived social sup-
port in the relationship between emotional availability of mother and
general psychological health. Note Path values represent unstandard-
ized regression coefficients. The value outside of the parentheses rep-
resents the total effect of emotional availability of mother on psycho-
logical health prior to the inclusion of the mediating variables. Value
in parentheses represents the direct effect, from bootstrapping analy-
ses, of emotional availability of mother on psychological health after
the mediators are included

42 G.Gökçe, B.Yılmaz
1 3
As can be seen in Fig.1, maternal emotional availability
has a direct and significant effect (t = −5.76, p < .001) on
general psychological health. Maternal emotional availabil-
ity exerts a direct and significant effect on the difficulty in
emotion regulation (t = −5.11, p < .001), inter personal rela-
tionship styles (t = 4.87, p < .001) , and multidimensional
perceived social support (t = 9.43, p < .001). When the pre-
dicting effect of the mediator variables on psychological
health (the predicted variable) is examined, it can be seen
that ‘difficulty in emotion regulation’ (t = 13.26, p < .001),
‘interpersonal relationship styles’ (t = −2.74, p < .01) , and
‘multidimensional perceived social support’ (t = −2.33,
p < .05) have direct significant effects. When maternal emo-
tional availability and all the mediator variables enter into
equation simultaneously, the relationship between mater-
nal emotional availability and general psychological health
becomes insignificant (t = −1.60, p > .05). On the basis of
these findings, it has been concluded that the mediator vari-
ables have ‘complete mediation’ effect on the relationship
between maternal emotional availability and general psycho-
logical health. Besides, a look at the findings of the analysis
shows that the entire model is significant (F4-375 = 80.91,
p < .001) and 46% of variance is accounted for.
A bootstrapping sample of 1000 people has been exam-
ined so as to discern whether or not the mediator variables’
partial mediation effect was significant. Results are given in
the Table3. Accordingly, the total indirect effect of all three
variables is significant (with a point estimate of −.50 and
95% BCa CI of −.6897, −.3217). Furthermore, when each
variable is addressed separately, it can be seen that complete
mediation effect of difficulty in emotion regulation (with a
point estimate of −.34 and 95% BCa CI of −.4901, −.1867),
interpersonal relationship styles (with a point estimate of
−.06 and 95% BCa CI of −.1381, −.0153), and multidi-
mensional perceived social support (with a point estimate of
−.12 and 95% BCa CI of −.2080, −.0137) is also significant.
Findings regarding the mediator role of the variables in
question on the relationship between paternal emotional
availability and general psychological well-being can be
seen in Fig.2.
As can be seen in Fig.2, paternal emotional availability
has a direct and significant effect (t = −5.12, p < .001) on the
general psychological health. Paternal emotional availability
exerts a direct and significant effect on mediator variables.
“Difficulty in emotion regulation” (t = −4.22, p < .001),
“interpersonal relationship styles” (t = 3.29, p < .01), and
“multidimensional perceived social support” (t = 9.30,
p < .001). When the predicting effect of the mediator vari-
ables on psychological health (the predicted variable) is
examined, it can be seen that ‘difficulty in emotion regu-
lation’ (t = 13.31, p < .001), ‘interpersonal relationships
styles’ (t = −2.87, p < .01), and ‘multidimensional perceived
social support’ (t = −2.24, p < .05) have a direct and sig-
nificant effect. When paternal emotional availability and all
the mediator variables enter into equation simultaneously,
the relationship between paternal emotional availability
and general psychological health becomes insignificant
Table 3 Mediation of the effect of emotional availability of mother on psychological health through emotion regulation difficulties, interper-
sonal relationship styles, and social support
BC bias corrected, BCa bias corrected and accelerated
Point estimate Product of coef-
ficients
Bootstrapping
Percentile 95% CI BC 95% CI BCa 95% CI
SE Z Lower Upper Lower Upper Lower Upper
Difficulty in emotion regulation −0.3282 0.0686 −4.7808 −0.4852 −0.1835 −0.4901 −0.1867 −0.4901 −0.1867
Interpersonal relationship styles −0.0655 0.0273 −2.3987 −0.1371 −0.0149 −0.1412 −0.0161 −0.1381 −0.0153
Multidimensional perceived social support −0.1009 0.0444 −2.2731 −0.1984 −0.0111 −0.2080 −0.0137 −0.2080 −0.0137
Total −0.4946 0.0861 −5.7473 −0.6826 −0.3119 −0.6898 −0.3225 −0.6897 −0.3217
-.42***(-.12)
-.22*
-.45**
.88***
.31***
.08**
-.22***
General
Psychological
Health
Emotional
Availability of
Father
*
p < .05,
**
p < .01,
***
p < .001
Fig. 2 Mediation roles of difficulty in emotion regulation, interper-
sonal relationship styles, and multidimensional perceived social sup-
port in the relationship between emotional availability of father and
general psychological health. Note Path values represent unstandard-
ized regression coefficients. The value outside of the parentheses rep-
resents the total effect of emotional availability of father on psycho-
logical health prior to the inclusion of the mediating variables. Value
in parentheses represents the direct effect, from bootstrapping analy-
ses, of emotional availability of father on psychological health after
the mediators are included

43Emotional Availability ofParents andPsychological Health: What Does Mediate This…
1 3
(t = −1.72, p > .05). On the basis of these findings, it has
been concluded that the mediator variables have ‘complete
mediation’ effect on the relationship between paternal emo-
tional availability and general psychological health. Besides,
a look at the findings of the analysis shows that the entire
model is significant (F4-375 = 81.10, p < .001) and 46% of
variance is accounted for.
A bootstrapping sample of 1000 people has been exam-
ined so as to discern whether or not the mediator vari-
ables’ partial mediation effect was significant. Results are
given in Table4. Accordingly, the total indirect effect of all
three variables is significant (with point estimate of −.30
and 95% BCa CI of −.4425, −.1649). Furthermore, when
each variable is addressed separately, it can be seen that
partial mediation effect of ‘difficulty in emotion regulation’
(with point estimate of −.20 and 95% BCa CI of −.3182,
−.0962), ‘interpersonal relationship styles’ (with point esti-
mate of −.03 and 95% BCa CI of −.0758, −.0087), and
‘multi-dimensional perceived social support’ (with point
estimate of −.07 and 95% BCa CI of −.1492 −.0062) is
also significant.
Discussion
The parent–child relationship varies according to develop-
mental stages. In the first years of the child, parents are more
supportive of the child’s development and guide the changes
that take place. When adolescence ends and child becomes
an adult, parent–child relationship takes on a different pat-
tern in which the relation is more egalitarian and both of the
parties mutually support each other reflective of a relation
between two adults (Birditt etal. 2008). Nevertheless, such
an egalitarian relation may not be the dominant pattern in
each parent–child interaction.
Establishing this ideal structure is considered to be rela-
tively easier in societies where individuals are financially
independent and live on their own terms, where social norms
are supportive of a relatively more egalitarian and independ-
ent parent–child interaction. Nevertheless, it is also foreseen
that reaching such a stage in societies like Turkey where
hierarchical structuring in family relations is supported and
normalized in a way to last for life by individuals and society
alike, where physical separation from parents (e.g., living
at one’s own place) generally takes place via marriage and
where familial relations are maintained on the basis of rela-
tionality will be much harder. Hence, this study examines
the mediator role of difficulty in emotion regulation, inter-
personal relationship styles, and perceived social support
on the relationship between parental emotional availability
and general psychological health of individuals aged 16–25
who still live with their parents. To this end, correlative rela-
tions among the research variables have been explored at
first. Relations among the variables have been found to be
significant in the expected direction. Accordingly, higher
levels of maternal and paternal emotional availability are
reflective of a more positive style in interpersonal relation-
ships and an increased level of multidimensional social
support. Lower levels of emotion regulation difficulties and
general psychological symptoms have been observed. This
finding is consistent with the literature. For example, it has
been found in a study conducted with adolescents that chil-
dren develop more constructive emotion regulation skills
when a parent responds in an accepting and supportive man-
ner (Eisenberg etal. 1998). There is no study that directly
addresses the relationship between parental emotional avail-
ability and interpersonal relationship styles. Nevertheless,
when this relationship is considered in terms of attachment,
it is known that secure attachment is related to more posi-
tive interpersonal relationships while insecure attachment
pattern refers to negative experiences in interpersonal rela-
tionships. The effect of parental emotional availability on
interpersonal relationships also manifests itself in perceived
social support. A study has pointed out that those individu-
als who perceive their mothers as having a non-supportive
style also perceive less social support from their parents,
teachers, and friends (Scherer etal. 1996). The starting point
for this research was to explore the relationship between
parental emotional availability and psychological health.
When related literature is examined, it can be seen that there
Table 4 Mediation of the effect of emotional availability of father on psychological health through emotion regulation difficulties, interpersonal
relationship styles, and social support
BC bias corrected, BCa bias corrected and accelerated
Point estimate Product of coef-
ficients
Bootstrapping
Percentile 95% CI BC 95% CI BCa 95% CI
SE Z Lower Upper Lower Upper Lower Upper
Difficulty in emotion regulation −0.1980 0.0491 −4.0323 −0.3103 −0.0891 −0.3182 −0.0966 −0.3182 −0.0962
Interpersonal relationship styles −0.0340 0.0157 −2.1719 −0.0702 −0.0074 −0.0765 −0.0089 −0.0758 −0.0087
Multidimensional perceived social support −0.0698 0.0319 −2.1898 −0.1434 −0.0040 −0.1492 −0.0062 −0.1492 −0.0062
Total −0.3018 0.0621 −4.8563 −0.4419 −0.1989 −0.4426 −0.1656 −0.4425 −0.1649

44 G.Gökçe, B.Yılmaz
1 3
are research findings demonstrating that parental emotional
availability and support are related to depression, social anx-
iety level, and behavioral problems (e.g., Bosco etal. 2003;
Lum and Phares 2005; Simons etal. 1994; Steinberg and
Davila 2008; Umberson 1992). All these findings, in their
entirety, could be explained with the view that parent–child
interactions with lower levels of emotional availability may
cause a risk factor related to maladaptive functionality in the
child and negative and inadequate interactions in which the
emotional and developmental needs of the child are not met
may lead to psychopathology (Lee and Gotlib 1991). Attach-
ment theory explains the relationship between a parent and
child and provides a basis for the concept of emotional avail-
ability. According to attachment theory’s principle regarding
psychopathological development, lack of maternal emotional
availability jeopardizes both the interaction between par-
ent–child and also the healthy emotional and behavioral
organization of the child (Cicchetti 1993; Cicchetti and Toth
2009). Furthermore, the quality of relationship that has been
established with a parent maintains its importance not only
in infancy and childhood, but also in subsequent periods of
development. As a matter of fact, research findings demon-
strate that children who continue to receive emotional sup-
port from their parents, feel attached to them and care about
their contributions and support (e.g., Vassallo etal. 2009).
Consistent with the literature, this study revealed no signifi-
cant difference in terms of perceived emotional availability
of parents between 16–18 and 18–25 age groups which can
be considered to be in two different developmental periods.
Autonomy and the ability to act autonomous that have
been acquired in the social, cognitive, and emotional fields
as a characteristic of adolescence and adulthood do not lead
to solitude or becoming distant to one’s parents. It enables
individuals to establish a changing and reciprocal relation-
ship with their parents (Allen etal. 1994).
Thus, it becomes important to evaluate how certain
parental properties affect psychological health within this
changing relationship structure. In mediator variable analy-
sis conducted for this end, it has been found that difficulty
in emotion regulation, interpersonal relationship style, and
social support has complete mediation effect on the rela-
tionship between maternal emotional availability and psy-
chological health, whereas the mediator variables in ques-
tion assume the role of partial mediators on the relationship
between paternal emotional availability and psychological
health.
As a requirement of the attachment system, parents still
maintain their function of being a secure ground for their
children in different developmental periods. It could be emo-
tional availability that enables them to maintain this func-
tion. Mikulincer and Shaver (2012) have stated that interac-
tions with emotionally available and supportive attachment
figures contribute to one’s sense of security, trigger positive
emotions, may be used as a psychological resource when
dealing with problems, and provide real and symbolic sup-
port in developing positive emotion regulation skills.
Parental responses that are emphasized within the con-
cept of emotional availability such as sensitivity, emotional
participation, non-hostility, compromise, controlling proper
emotional expressions and emotions may affect the devel-
opment and use of proper emotion regulation skills in the
children through direct and indirect means such as internali-
zation and taking someone as a model. Given the fact that
those issues in question may refer to the emotion regulation
methods employed by a parent, it can be said that research
findings demonstrating that the emotion regulation strategies
used by mothers and children are similar (e.g., Bariola etal.
2011) may support this opinion. Nevertheless, emotion regu-
lation process, which has functions such as decreasing the
intensity and duration of experienced emotion, is considered
to have a central role in many psychopathologies when it is
evaluated in terms of psychological health (Barlow 2000;
Cole etal. 1994). Thus, it can be put forward that paren-
tal characteristic has an impact on the psychological health
by influencing the child’s emotion regulation process. As
a matter of fact, there are research findings confirming the
fact that family has an effect on a child’s emotion regulation
skills (e.g., Morris etal. 2002).
Apart from emotion regulation, parental emotional avail-
ability seems to have an effect on the interpersonal rela-
tionships of the children in various ways. Even though no
study has been found in the relevant literature with respect
to the relationship in question addressed in the context
of interpersonal style, this issue could be assessed in the
context of attachment theory and internal working models.
According to attachment theory, the quality of interaction
with early-period caregivers may contribute to the develop-
ment of either positive or negative representations regarding
one’s own self and others. Additionally, it has been stated
that mental representations of individuals regarding them-
selves and others may not be solely rooted in childhood
interactions, but may also result from existing parent–child
relationship. These representations are strongly related to
the qualities of parent–child relationship; thus the existing
mother–child–father relationships may also influence the
mental representations (Allen etal. 2007). In this regard, it
can be considered that relationships maintained with emo-
tionally available parents have a positive effect on an indi-
vidual’s perception toward others. Through positive mental
representations such as believing that others are accessible
and helpful, the individual may be better equipped in estab-
lishing closeness and developing adaptive relations. This
situation has a positive effect on the social support perceived
by the individual and it may increase the function of social
support that acts as a buffer zone for negative life experi-
ences and also diminishes the possibility of developing

45Emotional Availability ofParents andPsychological Health: What Does Mediate This…
1 3
psychological symptoms by minimizing difficulties in inter-
personal relationships. Furthermore, mental representations
that are generated with parents seem to shape the basic emo-
tion regulation strategies, thoughts, and behaviors in close
relationships (Bowlby 1973). Therefore, representations of
the interactions with parents do not only shape the informa-
tion processing procedure, emotion regulation, and behav-
iors specific to that relationship, but they are also expected
to have an effect on one’s relationships with others (Elicker
etal. 1992). One of the fields these representations could be
transferred is the style used in interpersonal relationships.
The interactions that question the quality of attachment
between a parent and child may influence the interpersonal
relationship style that the child uses in accordance with his/
her internal models regarding himself/herself and others.
As addressed in this study, the positive/nourishing style
used in interpersonal relationships is considered to have the
potential to provide positive contributions to interpersonal
relationships (Greenwald 1999) by expressing the needs,
approaching the other person in an accepting, respectful, and
constructive manner (Batıgün and Şahin 2009; Şahin etal.
2011), and by contributing to the mutual agreement (Green-
wald 1999). On the other hand, inhibitory style having prop-
erties such as contempt, verbal abuse, and being easily vexed
makes it difficult to establish and maintain a healthy and
nourishing relationship (Greenwald 1999). Besides, nega-
tive interpersonal style could be related to destructive con-
sequences on its own and may also have a negative effect on
the social support that one may receive from others.
Apart from the issues that have been addressed above, one
of the important findings of the study is that the mediation
level of variables did not differ with regard to mothers and
fathers. Despite the recognition of the difference between
the behaviors regarding mother and father roles and some
findings indicating that the beliefs about fatherhood attitudes
are influenced largely by culture (Şen etal. 2014), it can be
stated that emotional availability indicates a construct dif-
ferent from these roles.
In conclusion, the findings of the study demonstrate that
parental emotional availability is related to difficulty in
emotion regulation, interpersonal relationship style, social
support, and psychological health of the individuals in the
adulthood period. In addition, difficulties in emotion regu-
lation, interpersonal relationship styles, and social support
have a mediator effect on the relationship between parental
emotional availability and psychological symptoms. When
seen in this light, it may be important for professionals who
work in the mental health field to evaluate parental emo-
tional availability while dealing with psychological symp-
toms. The findings of the study may also provide data for
behavioral practices so as to increase the parental emotional
care and support that have been shown in the mental studies
conducted with families. The findings may decrease the risk
of psychopathology through programs as well. The findings
acquired from the mediator variable analysis reveal that pro-
fessionals working with individuals who have had negative
experiences with their parents should also pay attention to
social support networks, the interpersonal styles, and emo-
tion regulation skills of these individuals while dealing with
psychological health. In the literature, it can be seen that
psychological health and variables that may be related to it
have been studied based on parents. These studies are often
explored in line with mother and her qualities. Nearly all the
findings obtained from the study reveal that both maternal
and paternal emotional availability have a significant rela-
tionship with the variables in the same direction. Thus, pro-
fessionals working in the mental health field will be better
off, if they take the qualities of fathers into consideration.
Limitations andsuggestions
This study that aims to assess the effect of a certain parental
property on psychological health makes use of a measure
that has been developed in Western society. Given the fact
that parental behaviors may differ across cultures, this poses
a limitation. Developing a culture-specific measurement
instrument in the field of emotional availability will prove
useful in avoiding this limitation in future studies. Another
limitation of the study is that the sample consists of indi-
viduals who live with their parents. Furthermore, examining
the effects of maternal and paternal emotional availability
on psychological health of individuals who do not live with
their parents will contribute to the related literature.
Mother–child interaction has often been addressed in the
relevant literature. Further research on father-oriented stud-
ies is warranted. The fact that difficulty in emotion regu-
lation, interpersonal relationship styles, and social support
has a complete mediator effect on the relationship between
paternal emotional availability and psychological health,
indeed, demonstrates that future research is warranted on
this issue.
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