Psychological size and distance in the relationships of adult children of alcoholics with their parents.

Adult children of alcoholics' (n = 68) perceptions of their relationships with parents were compared with those of a control sample (n = 37) to examine independent and joint influences of interpersonal status and affect on family dynamics. Visual metaphors for relationships using circle drawings and a status-affect rating scale from the Grasha-Ichiyama Psychological Size and Distance Scale were employed. Compared with the control group, adult children of alcoholics drew smaller circles to represent themselves, i.e., indicating less interpersonal status, only when assessing their relationships with their fathers. Analyses of status-affect ratings showed that the drawings of smaller circles reflected feeling less competent, i.e., having less personal knowledge and expertise, rather than perceptions of being submissive in the relationship. The distance drawn between the circles of adult children of alcoholics and their parents, i.e., psychological distance, was much larger than that of the control group. Ratings showed that perceptions of a negative emotional climate and submissiveness together accounted for 25% of the unique variance in predicting psychological distance. Perceptions of being submissive, however, were not associated with perceptions of psychological distance among adult children of nonalcoholic parents.