Parental Acceptance-Rejection Theory

Parental acceptance-rejection theory (Ronald Rohner, University of Connecticut, 2016) is an evidence-based theory of socialization and development over a lifespan that attempts to predict and explain major causes, consequences, and other correlates of interpersonal—especially parental—acceptance and rejection within the United States and worldwide (Rohner, 1986, 2004; Rohner and Rohner, 1980).
It attempts to answer five questions divided into three sub theories i.e. personality sub theory, coping sub theory, and sociocultural systems sub theory.
Personality sub theory asks two general questions. 1) Is it true, as the sub theory postulates, that children everywhere—in different sociocultural systems, racial or ethnic groups, genders, and the

what gives some adolescents the resilience to emotionally cope more effectively than most with the experiences of childhood rejection?
Finally, sociocultural systems sub theory asks two very different classes of questions i.e. 1) Why are some parents warm and loving and others cold, aggressive, neglecting/rejecting? Is it true, for example—as PARTheory predicts—that specific psychological, familial, community, and societal factors tend to be reliably associated the world over with specific variations in parental acceptance rejection?
2) In what way is the total fabric of society as well as the behaviour and beliefs of individuals within society affected by the fact that most parents in that society tend to either accept or reject their children? For example, is it true, as PARTheory predicts, that a people 's religious beliefs, artistic preferences, and other expressive beliefs and behaviours tend to be universally associated with their childhood experiences of parental love and love withdrawal?

In this essay, we will be focussing on the personality sub

This is a dimension on which all humans can be placed. As everyone has experienced in childhood more or less love at the hands of major caregivers. Thus, the warmth dimension has to do with the quality of the bond between parents and their children, and with the physical, verbal, and symbolic behaviours parents use to express these feelings. One end is marked by parental acceptance, which refers to the warmth, affection, care, comfort, concern, nurturance, support, or simply love that children can experience and receive from their parents and other significant caregivers. The other end is marked by parental rejection, which refers to the absence or significant withdrawal of these feelings and behaviours, and by the presence of a variety of physically and psychologically hurtful behaviours and affects. Extensive cross-cultural research over the course of half a century in PARTheory reveals that parental rejection can be experienced by any combination of four principal expressions. First, cold/unaffectionate behaviour, both physical, lack of kisses, hugs, cuddles, etc., and verbal, lack of praises, compliments, etc. Second, hostility/aggression, both physical, hit, kick, scratch, shove, pinch, etc., and verbal, curse, sarcasm, belittling, say thoughtless, unkind, cruel things to or about, etc. Third, indifference/neglect i.e. physical and psychological unavailability of parent, pays no attention