中青兩代童年記憶中的家庭經驗

Memory of Early Family Experiences in Two Generations

人格心理學家大都主張人格形成於早年的生活經驗。家是個體最早接觸的社會環境，家庭經驗乃影響個體發展的重要因素。家庭經驗中哪些是個體於童年時感受最強烈、那些是記憶最深刻的部分，以及它們所隱含的意義是本文所關注的焦點。本文取材自八篇童年故事。敘事者的年齡有四位介於四十五歲至五十歲，另四位約二十二至二十四歲。兩組敘事者都是男女各半。此兩個年齡層分屬中青兩個世代。八位敘事者都以文字敘述的方式描述其童年記憶中的家庭生活經驗。敘事者的故事主要包括童年記憶深刻的經驗、童年記憶中的父親和母親。動力的觀點以及系統的觀點是有關家庭的研究趨勢。本研究以系統觀的概念和阿德勒學派的家庭星座、早年回憶之理論，分析敘事者故事中的經驗型式與經驗意義。本文從兩個世代敘事者的早年回憶中，發現他們的家庭生活經驗有八個共同的經驗型式：父母的關係、對父母的情緒與身體狀態的感受、親子互動、對父母的評價、父親的言行特質、父母管教、重男輕女或不平等的手足經驗、困難或困惑的經驗；兩個相異的經驗型式為：母親的辛勞、與吃及酬賞有關的經驗。受試者對家庭經驗的詮釋受到社會文化中兩性關係之變遷和重男輕女價值觀之影響；同時兩代的幼年經驗有著清晰的時代印痕，反映出家庭生活經驗與社會時代背景息息相關；中青兩代處於不同的人生階段，對早年回憶中的經驗有不同的詮釋。本研究的結果支持了系統觀的論點，早年家庭生活中的各種經驗型式及意義，是個人發展、家庭系統及社會文化系統動力互動下的產物。

This study examined early family experiences across two generations. Personal narratives of early family experiences were collected by Early Recollection based on Adlerian psychological theory. Suggested topics for recollection included the most memorable life experience and the most memorable image of one's father or mother. Eight informants were chosen for this study, 4 aged 22-24 and 4 aged 45-50, four men and four women. Qualitative methods were used to interpret the stories, which were compared on the basis of social context, gender factors, and developmental stages. Focus was maintained on the commonalities and differences in the themes of the early family experience narratives. Common aspects between the two generations of the most memorable experiences were as follows: parents' relationship, sensitivity to the feelings of parents, parent-child interaction, child's expectations, characteristics of the father, parenting style, gender and sibling competition, and frustrations. Differences included mother's hard work, and the value of food and rewards. Limitations of the small sample size, the selective nature of memory, and the subjectivity of the author are discussed.