Attachment Style and Jealousy in the Digital Age: Do Attitudes About Online Communication Matter?

Kieran T Sullivan

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.678542

Abstract

Romantic jealousy, a complex response to a real or perceived threat to a romantic relationship, can have serious negative consequences for individuals, partners and perceived rivals. The likelihood of a jealous response is heightened among individuals who experience attachment anxiety, and online communication and social media provide unique fodder for romantic jealousy. The purpose of the current study is to test whether the association between attachment anxiety and online jealousy (jealous response to ambiguous hypothetical online scenarios) is moderated by negative attitudes about online communication. Individuals in dating relationships were asked about attachment anxiety and attitudes about online communication (i.e., apprehension and concern about misunderstandings) as well as emotional, cognitive, and behavioral online jealousy. Hierarchical linear regression revealed an attachment anxiety-attitude interaction, such that the link between attachment anxiety and jealousy was stronger for participants with relatively low levels of negative attitudes about online communication compared to participants with relatively high levels of negative attitudes. The current study expands knowledge about attachment anxiety and jealousy in the context of online communication and social media, and highlights the importance of considering attitudes about online communication when studying relationship processes in the digital arena.

Highlights

The association between attachment style and romantic jealousy is well-established (Dandurand and Lafontaine, 2014; see Martinex-Leon et al, 2017 for a recent review) and jealousy, a complex response to a real or perceived threat to an intimate relationship, can have negative, serious – even fatal – consequences for individuals, partners and perceived rivals (Mužinié et al, 2003)
Zero-order correlations between attachment anxiety and cognitive and behavioral online jealousy were not significantly higher than correlations between attachment anxiety and emotional online jealousy. This is contradictory to previous findings that suggest that attachment anxiety correlates more strongly with cognitive and behavioral jealousy than with emotional jealousy (e.g., Rydell and Bringle, 2007)
The current study found no main effect of attachment anxiety on emotional jealousy in regression analyses, but did find a significant main effect of attachment anxiety on cognitive/behavioral jealousy

Summary

Introduction

The association between attachment style and romantic jealousy is well-established (Dandurand and Lafontaine, 2014; see Martinex-Leon et al, 2017 for a recent review) and jealousy, a complex response to a real or perceived threat to an intimate relationship, can have negative, serious – even fatal – consequences for individuals, partners and perceived rivals (Mužinié et al, 2003). When early caregivers respond erratically to a child’s needs, she develops an insecure attachment style, believing that she is not worthy of love and/or that others are not dependable (Ainsworth et al, 1978). These working models are quite stable, and ample evidence suggests they affect intimate relationships in adulthood (Collins and Read, 1990; Simpson, 1990). Adult attachment style is commonly characterized using two dimensions, anxiety and avoidance (Bartholomew and Horowitz, 1991); attachment anxiety refers to high scores on the anxiety dimension, which may be further categorized as preoccupied/anxious (when avoidance is low) and fearful (when avoidance is high)

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Conclusion