Mother-Son Rejection and Triangulation in Polygamous Families: Probing the Spillover Effect and the Compensatory Hypothesis

Abstract

The current study examined the applicability of the spillover effect and the compensatory hypothesis in a sample of 80 Israeli Arab mothers living in polygamous families. It was posited that the marital dissatisfaction reflected in mothers’ romantic jealousy and their desire for revenge against their husbands would be transformed into feelings of rejection toward their own eldest sons and would involve the parental practice of triangulation. The results indicated that mothers’ desire for revenge mediated the association between romantic jealousy and mother–child rejection. Furthermore, mothers’ desire for revenge also mediated the association between romantic jealousy and mother-child triangulation. These findings point to the complexity of mother-child relationships in polygamous families.