Purpose: The purpose of this paper was to investigate the relationships of parental attachment and psychological separation to the career development process of secondary school adolescents. Design/methodology/approach: An "ex post facto" survey research design was adopted. The sample comprised 242 (males = 121, females = 121) senior secondary school II students randomly selected. Parental attachment, psychological separation, and career development scales were administered on the students. The data collected were analysed using hierarchical multiple regression analysis treating parental attachment and psychological separation as predictors and career development as a criterion variable. Parental attachment and psychological separation (mother scales) separately and significantly predicted career information-seeking behaviour of participants. However, combined attachment and separation (father scale) could not significantly predict any of the career development variables. Research limitations/implications: The study utilised cross-sectional and self-report measures. Practical implications: The cultural environment and type of family in which the study was carried out should be considered. Counsellors in Nigeria should assess views of students' parents and peers on career development. Originality/value: Most previous studies have linked familial factors like parental educational, financial and modelling opportunities with career development. This study reported the relationship of parental attachment and psychological separation with the career development process. Results from this study may enlighten career counsellors, parents and students on the need to assess the relationship between the students and their parents when dealing with their career development problems. (Contains 4 tables.)