Sources of ambivalence of emotions in family relationships – ways of understanding and experiencing them Cover Image

Źródła ambiwalencji emocji w relacjach rodzinnych – sposoby ich rozumienia i doświadczania
Sources of ambivalence of emotions in family relationships – ways of understanding and experiencing them

Author(s): Iwona Przybył, Honorata Jakubowska
Subject(s): Social psychology and group interaction, Social Theory, Family and social welfare
Published by: Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
Keywords: ambivalence; sources of ambivalence; intragenerational relations; intergenerational relations;

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to analyze the determinants ofstructural ambivalence experienced in family relationships. The first part presents, based on a review of the existing literature, the ways in which ambivalence is understood, the types of family relationships particularly prone to the occurrence of ambivalence, and its determinants. This article is based on data collected from 21 individual in-depth interviews with individuals experiencing emotional ambivalence in at least one intra- or intergenerational family relationship. The analysis focuses on how areas across different levels of social reality, from the individual to the macro-social, are understood, experienced, and interconnected. Respondents identified health, work, family obligations, and family role patterns/expectations as having the greatest impact on ambivalence in family relationships. The analysis allowed for the categorization of different domains ofsocial life into two groups: triggering domains and sustaining domains of ambivalence. Triggering domains, such as health, work, or differences in worldview, are crucial for the emergence of relational tensions with relatives, while sustaining domains, such as family role patterns/expectations and social expectations towards women/men, contribute to the persistence of ambivalent relationships.

  • Issue Year: 2025
  • Issue No: 59
  • Page Range: 13-42
  • Page Count: 30
  • Language: Polish
Toggle Accessibility Mode