The role of personality in the separation individuation process among Maltese university students

Abstract

Separation-Individuation is the process of establishing autonomy and a unique sense of self while maintaining relatedness to parents/caregivers (Youniss & Smollar, 1985). The process starts during toddlerhood (Mahler 1963) and continues even in the emerging adulthood period (Buhl 2008). However, research specific to separation-individuation in Maltese emerging adulthood might possibly be non-existent. Thus, the aim of this study was to get an understanding of this process within the Maltese context, and to determine the role of personality traits in predicting successful separation-individuation. A quantitative approach was taken. An online questionnaire was sent out to University of Malta students, thus a convenience sample was used, with all responses received being valid (N=101, aged 18 to 30; 70% female). Data was analysed by means of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings indicate that Neuroticism was positively related to fear of disappointing the parents and negatively related to self-reliance. Openness was associated with greater connectedness to parents and finally conscientiousness was positively related with seeking support from parents. In terms of gender differences and contrary to existing literature, the findings evidence that females did not exhibit higher levels of connectedness than males, while in accordance with literature, males exhibited greater scores of self-reliance when compared to their female counterparts. Lastly, participants living in the same household as their parents tended to report a greater fear of disappointing and a greater feeling of intrusiveness by the parents when compared to those not doing so. All findings are explained in detail in the results and discussion chapters.