Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA-75)

Description

The Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA-75) is one of the most widely used psychometric instruments for assessing the quality of attachment relationships between adolescents and the significant individuals in their social environment, namely their mother, father, and peers. Grounded in John Bowlby’s Attachment Theory, the questionnaire evaluates how early and current attachment relationships influence emotional development, self-concept, interpersonal functioning, and psychosocial adjustment.

Originally developed by Armsden and Greenberg (1987), the IPPA has been translated, culturally adapted, and psychometrically validated across numerous countries and populations. The IPPA-75 consists of 75 items, divided into three parallel 25-item versions assessing attachment to the mother, father, and peers, respectively.

The instrument measures three fundamental dimensions of attachment:

  • Trust, reflecting mutual understanding, respect, acceptance, and confidence in attachment figures.
  • Communication, assessing the openness, quality, and effectiveness of emotional communication.
  • Alienation, evaluating feelings of emotional distance, isolation, anger, and detachment within attachment relationships.

The IPPA-75 is extensively used in developmental psychology, clinical psychology, educational psychology, school counseling, family therapy, and adolescent mental health research. It provides valuable insights into family relationships, peer attachment, emotional development, and protective factors associated with psychological well-being.

Analysis and Use of Data

Analysis of the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA-75) involves calculating both overall and subscale scores separately for attachment to the mother, father, and peers.

For each version of the questionnaire, three primary subscales are calculated:

  • Trust
  • Communication
  • Alienation

Negatively worded items are reverse scored according to the standardized scoring procedures so that higher overall scores generally indicate stronger and more secure attachment relationships.

In research settings, IPPA-75 scores may be examined in relation to numerous developmental, psychological, and social variables, including:

  • self-esteem,
  • self-concept,
  • psychological well-being,
  • depression,
  • anxiety,
  • loneliness,
  • emotional intelligence,
  • psychological resilience,
  • perceived social support,
  • family functioning,
  • school adjustment,
  • academic achievement,
  • friendship quality,
  • interpersonal competence,
  • emotion regulation,
  • behavioral difficulties, and
  • overall quality of life.

The psychometric evaluation of the instrument typically includes assessments of internal consistency using Cronbach’s alpha, test–retest reliability, and construct validity through Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Depending on the objectives of the study, additional statistical procedures may include correlation analysis, multiple linear and logistic regression, ANOVA, MANOVA, mediation and moderation analyses, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to investigate the relationships between attachment and developmental, psychological, or social outcomes.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA-75) is to provide a reliable and valid assessment of the quality of attachment relationships between individuals and their parents and peers.

The instrument assists psychologists, educators, counselors, and researchers in identifying protective and risk factors associated with emotional development, psychological well-being, and social adjustment. Furthermore, it supports the development of individualized interventions within educational, counseling, and clinical settings and serves as an important research tool for investigating the role of attachment in personality development, emotional functioning, interpersonal relationships, and adolescent mental health.

Scoring

The IPPA-75 consists of 75 items, organized into three separate 25-item versions assessing attachment to the mother, father, and peers. Respondents rate each statement using a 5-point Likert response scale:

  • 1 = Almost Never or Never True
  • 2 = Not Very Often True
  • 3 = Sometimes True
  • 4 = Often True
  • 5 = Almost Always or Always True

Negatively worded items are reverse scored before calculating subscale and total scores. Separate scores are generated for the Trust, Communication, and Alienation subscales, as well as overall attachment scores for each attachment figure. Higher total scores generally indicate stronger, more secure, and healthier attachment relationships, whereas lower scores suggest greater emotional distance, reduced communication, or higher levels of alienation. Interpretation of the results should always follow the standardized scoring procedures established by the developers of the instrument.

References

Armsden, G. C., & Greenberg, M. T. (1987). The Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment: Individual Differences and Their Relationship to Psychological Well-Being in Adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 16, 427–454.

Bowlby, J. (1969/1982). Attachment and Loss: Volume 1. Attachment. Basic Books.

Ainsworth, M. D. S., Blehar, M. C., Waters, E., & Wall, S. (1978). Patterns of Attachment: A Psychological Study of the Strange Situation. Erlbaum.

Pardo, M. E., Pineda, S., Carrillo, S., & Castro, S. (2006). Psychometric Analysis of the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment in a Sample of Colombian Adolescents. Interamerican Journal of Psychology, 40(3), 289–302.

Allen, J. P., & Tan, J. S. (2016). The Multiple Facets of Attachment in Adolescence. In J. Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of Attachment (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.