Analysis

The Separation-Individuation Process Inventory (SIPI) was designed to assess the progress and challenges in the psychological process of separation and individuation. This process involves the development of an individual’s autonomy and their differentiation from parents or other significant figures.

Purpose

The main goal of the SIPI is to evaluate an individual’s ability to develop their individuality and to detach from parents or other significant people, to form independent ways of thinking and acting, and to handle the challenges of autonomy in adult life. The tool is primarily used for studying personality development and the dynamics of parent–child relationships.

Scoring

The SIPI includes a series of questions typically scored on a Likert scale, usually from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much). The total score is derived from the sum of the scores for all items.

References

Mahler, M. S., Pine, F., & Bergman, A. (1975). The Psychological Birth of the Human Infant: Symbiosis and Individuation. Basic Books.
Blatt, S. J., & Shichman, S. (1983). Parental and peer influences on personality development: The role of separation-individuation in the development of personality pathology. In P. B. Baltes & O. G. Brim (Eds.), Life-Span Development and Behavior (Vol. 5, pp. 131–166). Academic Press.
Levine, H. B. (1991). The Separation-Individuation Process and its Assessment: A Review. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 47(6), 785–797.
Segal, H. (1991). Introduction to the Work of Melanie Klein. Routledge.
Blatt, S. J. (2008). Relatedness and Self-definition: A Dialectical Model of Personality Development. In S. J. Blatt & J. L. Shichman (Eds.), The Role of Separation-Individuation in the Development of Personality (pp. 1–30). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.