Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship of father-daughter attachment to interpersonal trust, life-satisfaction, and fear of intimacy among Caucasian, African American, and Latino women within the U.S. The contextual variables of age, socioeconomic status, father's education level, and parents' divorce status were also examined. Method. The sample was composed of 533 respondents; 412 Caucasians, 55 African Americans, and 66 Latinos. The mean age was 26 years. Data for this study were collected through a survey placed on a Web site on the Internet. Statistical analyses included Pearson Coefficient Correlation and a Stepwise Multiple Regression analyses with father-daughter attachment as the criterion variable. Findings. For Caucasian women higher father-daughter attachment was predicted by (a) higher childhood socioeconomic status (β = −.16, p < .001); by (b) growing up in a nondivorced family (β = .20, p < .001); (c) higher life-satisfaction (β = .15, p < .001); and (d) younger-aged women (β = −.21, p < .001). For Latino women, higher father-daughter attachment was predicted by (a) higher current socioeconomic status (β = −.33, p < .05) and (b) higher interpersonal trust (β = .30, p < .05). Finally, for African American women, high father-daughter attachment was predicted only by higher education of the father (β = .33, p < .05). Results reinforce examining father-daughter attachment in a culture-specific context. It is suggested that the constructs within the attachment theory need to be re-examined in terms of their appropriate application for ethnic minority groups.