Background: Patterns of identification among family members may differ in families with children with separation anxiety disorder (SAD) as compared with healthy children. However, this has not been explored to date. Method: The present study examines identification processes in 199 families: 100 families of children with SAD, 43 families of children with other anxiety disorders, and 56 families of nondisordered children, using the Family Identification Test. Results: Children with SAD and their parents generally identify significantly less with each other and report less desire to be similar to each other than nondisordered children and their parents. Further, children with SAD are less self-congruent than healthy children. There were no significant differences between children with SAD and with other anxiety disorders. Conclusions: Identification and self-congruence distinguish families of children with SAD from families of healthy children. Future studies should aim to determine the direction of effects over time, as well as to determine the contribution of identification and coherence in explaining SAD after accounting for other factors such as attachment and self-esteem.

Keywords:
Separation anxiety disorder, Family Identification Test
1.
Remschmidt H, Mattejat F: Familien-Identifikations-Test (FIT). Göttingen, Hogrefe, 1999.
2.
Schneider S: Angststörungen bei Kindern und Jugendlichen: Grundlagen und Behandlung. Berlin, Springer, 2004.
3.
Schneider S, Lavallee K: Treatment for separation anxiety disorder; in Essau C, Ollendick TH (eds): Treatment of Childhood and Adolescent Anxiety. Hoboken, Wiley, 2012.
4.
Cartwright-Hatton S, McNicol K, Doubleday E: Anxiety in a neglected population: prevalence of anxiety disorders in pre-adolescent children. Clin Psychol Rev 2006;26:817-833.
5.
Kessler RC, Berglund P, Demler O, Jin R, Merikangas KR, Walters EE: Lifetime prevalence and age-of-onset distributions of DSM-IV disorders in the national comorbidity survey replication. Arch Gen Psychiatry 2005;62:593-768.
6.
Kossowsky J, Pfaltz M, Schneider S, Taeymans J, Locher C, Gaab J: The separation hypothesis of panic disorder revisited: a meta-analysis. Am J Psychiatry, in press.
7.
Murray L, Creswell C, Cooper PJ: The development of anxiety disorders in childhood: an integrative review. Psychol Med 2009;39:1413-1423.
8.
Freud S: Aus den Anfängen der Psychoanalyse. Frankfurt am Main, Fischer, 1962.
9.
Kagan J: The concept of identification. Psychol Rev 1958;65:296-305.
10.
Kohlberg L: Zur kognitiven Entwicklung des Kindes. Frankfurt, Lang, 1974.
11.
Siegler R, Deloache J, Eisenberg N: How Children Develop. New York, Worth, 2003.
12.
Strauman TJ, Higgins ET: Automatic activation of self-discrepancies and emotional syndromes: when cognitive structure influence affect. J Pers Soc Psychol 1987;53:1004-1014.
13.
Moretti MM, Higgins ET: Relating self-discrepancy to self-esteem: the contribution of discrepancy beyond actual-self ratings. J Exp Soc Psychol 1990;26:108-123.
14.
Higgins ET: Self-discrepancy: a theory relating self and affect. Psychol Rev 1987;94:319-340.
15.
Cooley CH: Human Nature and the Social Order. New York, Free Press, 1956.
16.
Sinigaglia C, Rizzolatti G: Through the looking glass: self and others. Conscious Cogn 2011;20:64-74.
17.
Beyers W, Cok F: Adolescent self and identity development in context. J Adolesc 2008;31:147-150.
18.
Käppler C: Familienbeziehungen bei hyperaktiven Kindern im Behandlungsverlauf. Kindheit Entwicklung 2005;14:21-29.
19.
Tretrop J: Subjektives Familienbild, Identifikation mit den Eltern, Selbstzufriedenheit und depressive Störungen bei Kindern und Jugendlichen. Marburg, Philipps-Universität, 1997.
20.
Bogels SM, Brechman-Toussaint ML: Family issues in child anxiety: attachment, family functioning, parental rearing and beliefs. Clin Psychol Rev 2006;26:834-856.
21.
Papini DR, Roggman LA: Adolescent perceived attachment to parents in relation to competence, depression, and anxiety. J Early Adolesc 1992;12:420-440.
22.
Bosmans G, Braet C, Van Vlierberghe L: Attachment and symptoms of psychopathology: early maladaptive schemas as a cognitive link? Clin Psychol Psychother 2010;17:374-385.
23.
Schneider S, Blatter-Meunier J, Herren C, Adornetto C, In-Albon T, Lavallee K: Disorder-specific cognitive-behavioral treatment for separation anxiety disorder in young children: A randomized waitlist-controlled trial. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics 2011;80:206-215.
24.
Schneider S, Unnewehr S, Margraf J: Diagnostisches Interview psychischer Störungen im Kindes- und Jugendalter (K-DIPS). Berlin, Springer, 2008.
25.
Beck AT, Epstein N, Brown G, Steer RA: An inventory for measuring clinical anxiety: psychometric properties. J Consult Clin Psychol 1988;56:891-893.
26.
Margraf J, Ehlers A: Beck-Angst-Inventar (BAI). Testhandbuch. Göttingen, Hogrefe, 2002.
27.
Feingold A: Gender differences in personality: a meta-analysis. Psychol Bull 1994;116:429-456.
28.
Ziegler-Hill V: The connections between self-esteem and psychopathology. J Contemp Psychother 2011;41:157-164.
© 2013 S. Karger AG, Basel
2013
Copyright / Drug Dosage / Disclaimer
Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.
Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.
You do not currently have access to this content.