Childhood Parental Rejection and Adulthood Depression: Evidence from Gilgit, Pakistan

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between childhood parental rejection and depression in adulthood among residents of Gilgit. A convenience sample of 500 participants (251 men and 249 women), aged 18 to 70 years, was drawn from Danyore, Sawakr, Nomal, and central Gilgit. Childhood parental rejection was measured using the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire for both father and mother (PARQ; Rohner, 2005), and adulthood depression was measured using the depression subscale of the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-38). Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics, correlation coefficients, and an independent samples t-test using SPSS version 22.0. Results showed that both paternal and maternal childhood rejection were significantly and positively correlated with adulthood depression, meaning depression scores rose as recalled parental rejection increased. Paternal and maternal rejection scores were themselves strongly correlated with one another. The independent samples t-test comparing men and women on depression did not reach the conventional threshold for statistical significance, and participants of both genders were treated as reporting broadly similar levels of depression. These findings support the interpersonal acceptance-rejection framework's claim that a lack of parental warmth in childhood carries into adult psychological functioning. The study contributes early evidence on this relationship from Gilgit-Baltistan, a region where such research has previously been scarce, and points to accepting parenting practices as a factor worth attention in this setting.