Kayla Ooi Yu Jin

Sunway University | | Degree: BSc (Hons) Psychology
Impacts of Interparental Conflict and Gender on Young Adults' Self-Esteem and Romantic Relationship Competence

Abstract

Past research documented strong association between interparental conflict (IPC), self-esteem and romantic relationship competence (RRC) among children and adolescents (Garber, 1992; Ross & Fuertes, 2010). However, this field of study among young adults is scarce. Hence, a cross-sectional design study is used to examine impacts of IPC on young adults’ self-esteem and RRC with gender differences being investigated too. 201 responses (M = 21.51; SD = 1.58, 115 females) were analysed. To assess RRC, this study utilised the Inventory of Romantic Relationship Competence (IRRC) made up of 7 subscales, namely locus of control, perspective taking, romantic appeal, intimacy, temperament, emotion regulation and conflict resolution. IPC is found to impact 6 out of 7 domains of RRC, with the strongest association with intimacy (d = 0.1), no association is found between IPC and perspective taking. Next, self-esteem is found to positively correlate to RRC, with the strongest association found between self-esteem and conflict resolution (d= .26). Furthermore, IPC is found to be predictive of self-esteem (d= .11). However, no gender differences were found on the impact of IPC on self-esteem. In short, the study highlights impacts of IPC on self-esteem and RRC among Malaysian young adults, providing a preliminary understanding of this field in the country. 

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Kayla Ooi Yu Jin