Insecure Adult Attachment Research Articles

Adult insecure attachment styles and suicidality: A meta-analysis

Insecure attachment styles have been linked to an increased risk for suicidality, functioning as a distal risk factor for suicide behaviors in adulthood. Studies on the subject are numerous, but heterogeneous in methodology. This study aimed to sensibly group study findings and quantify the magnitude of this relationship. We performed a systematic literature search to select studies investigating insecure adult attachment styles and suicidal ideation and attempt, and present quantitative data that could be pooled into a meta-analysis. Six random-effect meta-analyses were performed, comprising 47 studies with 50,214 individuals. A small effect size association was found for the relationship between suicidal ideation and insecure attachment styles (anxious, avoidant, and fearful); similar findings were found for the relationship between suicide attempt and insecure attachment (Pearson’s r ranged from 0.16 to 0.26, all ps <0.05). The type of attachment measure moderated the association of suicidal ideation with anxious and avoidant attachment. This review has been preregistered at The International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) – Registration number CRD42023401459.

Autistic and schizotypal traits exhibit similarities in their impact on mentalization and adult attachment impairments: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundDeficits in mentalizing and attachment occur in the autism and schizophrenia spectrum, and their extended traits in the general population. Parental attachment and the broader social environment highly influence the development of mentalizing. Given the similarities in the symptomatology and neurodevelopmental correlates of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia (SCH), it is crucial to identify their overlaps and differences to support screening, differential diagnosis, and intervention.MethodsThis cross-sectional study utilized questionnaire data from 2203 adults (65.1% female, mean age[SD] = 37.98[9.66]), including participants diagnosed with ASD, SCH, and those exhibiting subclinical traits to investigate the associations between mentalizing, attachment, and perceived social support during adolescence across the autistic and schizotypy spectrum.ResultsIt was revealed that both autistic and schizotypal traits have comparable effects on insecure adult attachment, primarily through challenges in mentalizing. The impact of mentalizing deficits on adult attachment slightly varies between autistic and schizotypal traits. Conversely, perceived social support during adolescence relates to improved mentalizing and secure adult attachment as a protective factor during development.ConclusionsThese outcomes highlight the significance of supportive therapeutic relationships and community care while suggesting directions for further research and collaborative treatments addressing ASD and SCH, considering the differential impact of mentalizing on adult attachment.

Reflective functioning mediates the relationship between insecure adult attachment and the severity of prolonged grief symptoms.

This study aimed to investigate the mediation role of reflective functioning (i.e., certainty and uncertainty about mental states) in the relationship between insecure attachment (i.e., attachment avoidance and attachment anxiety ) and the severity of prolonged grief symptoms. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 329 bereaved participants (51.7% females, mean age= 46.94 ± 14.62 years). Participants completed the Prolonged Grief Scale (PG-13), the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ), and the Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (RFQ). Demographic and bereavement-related information were also collected. Certainty about mental states fully mediated the relationship between both the attachment avoidance and attachement anxiety and severity of prolonged grief symptoms. The findings of this study indicate that reflective functioning impairment, specifically certainty about mental states of self and others, mediate the paths from insecure attachment to prolonged grief symptoms. This suggests that improving reflective functioning may contribute to the treatment bereaved individuals at risk of PGD.

Pathways of Intergenerational Risk: Examining the Association Between Maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences and Child Socio-Emotional and Behavioral Concerns at 8 Years of Age.

Support has been found for the intergenerational transmission of risk from maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to child outcomes. Less research has focused on longitudinal psychosocial pathways that account for this transmission. In the current study, path analysis examined mediating pathways (i.e., maternal adult attachment insecurity, romantic relationship functioning, and maternal anxiety and depression symptoms) in the association between maternal ACEs and internalizing and externalizing concerns among their child at eight years of age. Participants included 1,994 mother-child dyads from a prospective longitudinal cohort sample. Maternal ACEs were significantly associated directly with child internalizing concerns (β = .06, p = .025) and indirectly via both maternal attachment anxiety and avoidance, lower romantic relationship functioning, and depression, (β = .002, p = .006; β = .003, p = .005, respectively). Maternal ACEs were directly associated with child externalizing concerns (β = .06, p = .018) and indirectly via both maternal attachment anxiety and avoidance, lower romantic relationship functioning, and depression, (β = .001, p = .008; β = .002, p = .010, respectively). This study identified several maternal risk factors that have implications for downstream internalizing and externalizing concerns among their children.

Maternal antenatal depression, oxytocin, and infant temperament: The roles of ethnicity and adult attachment avoidance

This study examined the associations between maternal depression and oxytocin in pregnancy, caregiving sensitivity and adult attachment style, and infant temperament. One hundred and six women recruited from a public hospital antenatal clinic in Australia, and their infants completed assessments at three time points (Time 1: pregnancy; Time 2: 3-month postpartum; Time 3: 12-month postpartum). Mothers completed self-report questionnaires assessing maternal depression symptom severity at Time 1-3, adult attachment style at Time 2, and infant temperament at Time 3. At Time 1, they also provided a blood sample to assess peripheral oxytocin levels, and at Time 2, participated in a parent-child interaction session, which was later coded for caregiving behavior (sensitivity). Neither maternal depression nor lower levels of oxytocin during pregnancy predicted difficult infant temperament; rather, it was predicted by non-Caucasian ethnicity. When all other variables were free to vary, adult attachment avoidance mediated an association between maternal depression during pregnancy and difficult infant temperament. Results highlight the potential value of interventions focusing on adult attachment insecurity for pregnant women and raise questions about associations between culture/ethnicity and infant temperament.

Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, parental stress, and attachment styles

Disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) is a relatively new diagnostic entity concerning children with chronic irritability and severe anger outbursts. Currently, there is limited knowledge about the parental factors associated with the disorder. The aim of this study was to compare stress levels and attachment styles in parents of children with DMDD with those of parents of children with other diagnoses. Our sample consisted of 218 children (6–12 years, Mage = 9.68 years) referred to child mental health outpatient clinics. Clinicians used a standardized semi-structured diagnostic interview to identify diagnoses. Parental stress levels and attachment styles were assessed using parent reports. We found that parents of children with DMDD experience significantly higher levels of parenting stress related to factors in the child than parents of children with other diagnoses. Furthermore, parents of children with DMDD show a higher association with insecure adult attachment styles than parents of children without DMDD. Finally, an adult preoccupied-ambivalent attachment style explains the variability in parental stress in the DMDD group to a large degree. We discuss how parental stress and an insecure attachment style can be associated with negative parenting practices. An implication from this study could be that treatment results might be improved by involving parents more in treatment programs for children with DMDD.

Intimate relationships and hypnosis: insecure adult attachment affects emotions and absorption during hypnosis.

Hypnosis research indicates that subjects are not equally hypnotizable. Most studies on hypnotizability focused on the relationships with personality or cognitive variables. At the same time, only a few proposed the contribution of the attachment style, defined as the result of the childhood relationship with the caregivers and influencing the adult relations. In the present investigation, two studies were carried out to test the possible association between adult attachment and hypnotic responsivity. The adult attachment was assessed using the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised (ECR-R) questionnaire, while hypnosis was assessed through the Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility (HGSHS:A; Study 1) and the Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory: Hypnotic Assessment Procedure (PCI-HAP; Study 2) in order to adopt a behavioral and a phenomenological approach, respectively. Analyses showed that attachment factors (anxiety and avoidance) were not associated with the level of hypnotizability, whereas it was associated with variations of consciousness during hypnosis, mainly internal dialogue, absorption and negative emotions. Overall, the insecure attachment styles yielded increased mind wandering and restlessness during hypnosis when compared to the secure style. The reason probably lies in the feeling of anxiety or danger of insecurely attached individuals when involved in intimate or confidential relationships. These findings clarify a still poorly investigated aspect concerning the influence of attachment style on hypnotic experience and further highlight the need to consider inter-individual differences and the phenomenological perspective when assessing hypnosis and hypnotizability.

Childhood maltreatment and the quality of marital relationships: Examining mediating pathways and gender differences

Background: Childhood maltreatment (CM) is considered a traumatic experience with long-term adverse effects on the quality of adult intimate relationships. Research on the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon among Arab societies is scarce. Objective: This study investigated the impact of childhood physical abuse (PA) and emotional abuse (EA) on the quality of marital relationships. Additionally, it examined the mediating roles of two dimensions of insecure adult attachment (i.e., avoidant and anxious) to a romantic partner and psychological distress within gender-specific models. Method: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among a representative sample of 604 married Arab adults ( M age = 33.5, SD = 6.52; 50.1% women) in Israel using a self-administered questionnaire. Results: Childhood PA was significantly related to low levels of relationship quality among men and women. For men, childhood PA was positively related to psychological distress and both patterns of romantic attachment styles, which in turn were negatively associated with relationship quality. For women, childhood PA was positively associated with psychological distress and avoidant attachment, correlating with low levels of relationship quality. Conclusion: A retrospective assessment of childhood PA is associated with decreased levels of marital relationship quality for men and women. This association is mediated by psychological distress and romantic attachment styles. Implications: Implementing interventions focused on improving mental health and promoting a secure romantic attachment style can enhance the quality of marital relationships for adults with CM experiences.

Exploring adult attachment and anxiety: the role of intolerance of uncertainty and social support

The aim of the study is to examine the relationships in between intolerance of uncertainty, perceived social support, insecure adult attachment (anxious and avoidant) and anxiety. The mediator effects of intolerance of uncertainty and perceived social support on the relationship between adult attachment and anxiety have not been examined together yet. Considering the prevalence of anxiety and the etiology of attachment, the outcomes of this study are important in both theoretical and practical contexts. Four hypotheses of the study are built on the assumption that both intolerance of uncertainty and perceived social support will have mediating effects on the relationships between anxious attachment and anxiety, and between avoidant attachment and anxiety. The sample consists of 880 university students between the ages of 18-25. Experiences in Close Relationships Inventory-II-Short Form, Trait Anxiety Form, Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale-Short Form and Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale were used. According to the findings, intolerance of uncertainty was found to be in the role of mediator on the relationship between anxious attachment and anxiety, but not on the relationship between avoidant attachment and anxiety. The family and significant other sub-dimensions of perceived social support mediated the relationship between both anxious attachment and anxiety, and avoidant attachment and anxiety.

위험회피 기질이 우울에 미치는 영향

The purpose of this study is to examine the mediating effect of Insecure Adult Attachment onthe relations of Harm Avoidance and Depression symptoms. and to find out the moderatedeffect of Cognitive Flexibility that are assumed to operate on the where Harm Avoidance hasdirect effect on Depression symptoms and to operate on a mediated indirect path that InsecureAdult Attachment. 384 adults aged over 19 years participated in the survery for this study, andSPSS 18 and SPSS PROCESS Macro 2.13 are used to analyze the collected data. The main resultsof the study are summarize as follows: Insecure Adult Attachment partially mediated the relationbetween Harm Avoidance and Depression symptoms. Cognitive Flexibility had significantmoderating effect within the relationship of Harm Avoidance and Depression symptoms. Cognitive Flexibility had significant moderating effect on indirect path that affects Insecure AdultAttachment within the relationship of Harm Avoidance and Depression symptoms. Thesefindings suggest the importance of improving the understanding of factors related to thedevelopment of depressive vulnerability. In addition, this implication and suggestions for futureresearch are provided.

신경발달장애아동 어머니의 불안정 성인애착과 심리적 안녕감의 관계에서 자녀애착에 의해 조절된 장애수용의 매개효과

This study examined moderated mediating effects of maternal attachment through disabilityacceptance between the insecure adult attachment and the psychological well-being of mothersof children with neurodevelopmental disorders. The results are as follows. First, there havebeen significant mediating effects of disability acceptance in the effects of mothers’ insecureadult attachment on their psychological well-being. Second, there have been significantmoderated mediation effects in the relationships of disability acceptance and psychologicalwell-being. Third, there have been significant moderated mediating effects of maternalattachment through disability acceptance in effects of insecure adult attachment on interpersonalpsychological well-being. The results of this study show the need for intervention through theimprovement of disability acceptance as mediating variables and maternal attachment asmoderating variables for stable psychological well-being.

A Case Study of Sandplay Therapy for a Mother with Insecure Attachment and the Impact on Family Members

The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes in a mother's attachment and emotional control resulting from Sandplay Therapy in cases of insecure adult attachment. Additionally, the study aimed to examine the changes in family perception and attachment to the mother's changes. One mother with a high insecure adult attachment score and her family were selected as subjects for this study. Attachment scales, emotional control scales, sentence completion tests (SCTs), and interviews were conducted before and after the therapy to study the subjects' changes in attachment and emotional control, as well as the changes perceived by family members. The mother then underwent 12 sessions of Sandplay Therapy. The results showed that: After Sandplay therapy, the mother's attachment and emotional control demonstrated positive changes. The mother's changes through Sandplay Therapy contributed to the improvement of the family's positive perception and attachment level. The Sandplay box underwent a process of individualization, leading to self-realization. In conclusion, Sandplay Therapy helps stabilize the attachment and emotion of insecure attachment mothers, and the changes in mothers have a positive impact on the perception and attachment of family members. A follow-up study, it is necessary to expand the number of study subjects by attachment type.

유아 자녀를 둔 어머니의 성인애착과 심리적 안녕감의 관계: 인지적 정서조절전략의 매개효과

The purpose of this study is to examine whether or not the relationship between mothers’ adult attachment (anxious and avoidant) and psychological well-being is medi-ated by cognitive emotion regulation strategies (adaptive and maladaptive). Three hun-dred and twelve mothers (mean age = 36.65 years old) participated in the study via an on-line survey. Data were analyzed using SPSS 25.0 and Process macro for SPSS (Hayes, 2022). Descriptive statistics and Pearson’s product correlation coefficients were obtained, and tests of the mediation effects were performed by model 4 of Process macro for SPSS. As for mediation effects, both adaptive and maladaptive cognitive emotion regulation strategies were found to partially mediate the relationship between mothers’ adult at-tachment and psychological well-being. These findings indicate that supporting mothers of insecure adult attachment (anxious or avoidant) to use adaptive cognitive emotion reg-ulation strategies might enhance their psychological well-being which is related to pos-itive parenting.

상담자의 불안정 성인애착과 작업동맹의 관계

This study examined the moderated mediating effect of Focusing manner on the relationshipbetween counselors' insecure adult attachment, countertransference management, and workingalliance. The subjects of the study were 308 youth and adult counselor. As a result of thestudy, first, the significant partial mediating effect of countertransference management in therelationship between insecure adult attachment and working alliance was verified. Second, themoderating effect of focusing manner was found to be significant in the relationship betweenthe counselor's insecure adult attachment and countertransference management. Third, amoderated mediating effect of focusing manner appeared in the path from the counselor'sinsecure adult attachment to the working alliance through countertransference management. Thisstudy tried to confirm counselor's personal and professional characteristics that predict thequality of the working alliance, and discussed limitations and suggestions for the future study.

Women pregnant after previous perinatal loss: relationships between adult attachment, shame, and prenatal psychological outcomes

ABSTRACT Background Insecure adult attachment, shame, self-blame, and isolation following perinatal loss place bereaved women at risk of adverse psychological outcomes, which can impact child and family outcomes. To date, no research has considered how these variables continue to influence women’s psychological health in pregnancy subsequent to loss. Objective This study explored associations between prenatal psychological adjustment (less grief and distress) and adult attachment, shame, and social connectedness, in women pregnant after loss. Method Twenty-nine pregnant Australian women accessing a Pregnancy After Loss Clinic (PALC) completed measures of attachment styles, shame, self-blame, social connectedness, perinatal grief, and psychological distress. Results Four 2-step hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed adult attachment (secure/avoidant/anxious; Step 1), shame, self-blame, and social connectedness (Step 2) explained 74% difficulty coping, 74% total grief, 65% despair, and 57% active grief. Avoidant attachment predicted more difficulty coping and higher levels of despair. Self-blame predicted more active grief, difficulty coping, and despair. Social connectedness predicted lower active grief, and significantly mediated relationships between perinatal grief and all three attachment patterns (secure/avoidant/anxious). Conclusions Although avoidant attachment and self-blame can heighten grief in pregnancy after loss, focusing on social connectedness may be a helpful way for prenatal clinicians to support pregnant women during their subsequent pregnancy – and in grief.

성인초기 불안정 성인애착과 대인관계능력의 관계에서 정서인식명확성의 매개효과

Objectives This study was conducted to verify the mediating effect of emotion recognition clarity in the relation-ship between insecure adult attachment and interpersonal ability.&#x0D; Methods To this end, a total of 321 copies of data were finally analyzed online for unmarried adult men and women in their 20s and 30s. Based on the collected data, descriptive statistics and correlation analysis were performed using the SPSS 23 program, and structural models and mediating effects were verified using the AMOS 22.0 program.&#x0D; Results The results of this study are as follows: First, anxious attachment and avoidant attachment showed a negative correlation with emotional clarity and interpersonal ability. Emotion recognition clarity and interpersonal ability showed a positive correlation. Second, in the effect of anxious attachment on interpersonal ability, emotion recognition clarity showed a significant complete mediating effect. Third, in the effect of avoidant attachment on interpersonal ability, emotion recognition clarity showed a significant partial mediating effect. In other words, at-tachment insecurity directly affects interpersonal skills. Low emotional clarity can lead to low interpersonal skills, and attachment avoidance directly affects interpersonal skills, but low emotional clarity can reduce interpersonal relationships. It suggests that the ability may be lowered.&#x0D; Conclusions These research results indicate that anxious attachment and avoidant attachment affect inter-personal ability through emotional clarity, and that individuals with anxious attachment and avoidant attachment in early adulthood clearly understand their emotions experienced in interpersonal relationships. It is significant in suggesting the need for counseling intervention to improve interpersonal skills by helping to communicate well.

Investigating a Common Structure of Personality Pathology and Attachment

Critical theoretical intersections between adult insecure attachment and personality disorders (PDs) suggest that they may overlap, but a lack of empirical analysis to date has limited further interpretation. The current study used a large sample ( N = 812) of undergraduates ( N = 355) and adults receiving psychological treatment ( N = 457) to test whether a joint hierarchical factor structure of personality pathology and insecure attachment is tenable. Results suggested that attachment and PD indicators load together on latent domains of emotional lability, detachment, and vulnerability, but antagonistic, impulsigenic, and psychosis-spectrum factors do not subsume attachment indicators. This solution was relatively consistent across treatment status but varied across gender, potentially suggesting divergent socialization of interpersonal problems. Although further tests are needed, if attachment and PDs prove to be unitary, combining them has exciting potential for providing an etiologic-developmental substrate to the classification of interpersonal dysfunction.

Eye tracking shows no substantive relationships between individual differences related to aggression and visual attention to unambiguously violent stimuli

Social-cognitive theories of aggression stipulate that aggressive people have an attentional bias for aggressive and ambiguously aggressive cues. This biased social information processing is thought to occur from very basic attentional processes (encoding) through to higher order interpretative processes (representation). The present research was a detailed investigation into the relationships between aggression-related personality dimensions in young adults and attention toward images depicting general violence, intimate partner violence, and non-violent images. Participants completed measures of trait aggression, intimate partner violence perpetration and victimization, alcohol use, psychopathy, empathy, and insecure adult attachment. In a dual-picture free-viewing eye tracker paradigm, participants viewed three trial types for 2000 ms: general violence versus neutral cues; intimate partner violence versus neutral cues; and intimate partner violence versus general violence. Experiment 1 (N = 127) showed a few of the predicted relationships between the traits and attention, but Experiment 2 (N = 127) failed to replicate these findings and there was no overlap in significant results between studies. These data provide very little support for attentional biases in a healthy population toward unambiguously violent stimuli as a function of aggression-related traits.

대학생의 불안정 성인애착과 회복탄력성의 관계에서 미치는 사회적 지지의 매개효과

Objectives The purposes of this study is to examine the mediating effects of sosial support between uncertainty adult attachment and resilience of university students.&#x0D; Methods A total 389 students who randomly sampled responsed to the questionnaire at university in Gyeonggi-do. The study utilized Experience in Close Relationship-Revised(ECR-R), Social Support and Resilience questionnaire. For the collected data was used by the SPSS 24.0 program and reliability analysis, frequency analysis, descriptive statistics analysis, and correlation analysis were performed. Baron and Kenny's mediation analysis was conducted to verify the mediating effect of social support between uncertainty adult attachment and resilience.&#x0D; Results As a result of the correlation analysis of each variable, Both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance showed a statistically significant negative correlation with resilience, and both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance showed a statistically significant negative correlation with social support. In addition, social support was found to have a statistically positive correlation with resilience. Social support was found to play a partial mediating role in the relationship between insecure adult attachment and resilience.&#x0D; Conclusions Through this study, it was found that social support has a positive effect on resilience. And In order to improve resilience, the importance of the surrounding roles of family, friends, schools, and neighbors was found. In addition, even if there are no support resources in the family, the warm interest and heart of social members toward teenagers should come first.

Four-week intranasal oxytocin administration reduces attachment avoidance in older women

The neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) serves as a critical modulator of social cognition and social behavior. Adult attachment is an affiliative process crucial for social interaction across adulthood. Insecure adult attachment comprises two broad dimensions, attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance. Both these dimensions of attachment are currently understudied regarding OT modulation, and especially in older adults. The present study determined the effects of chronic intranasal OT administration on adult attachment in generally healthy older women and men (aged 55–95 years). Embedded in a larger project, participants were randomly assigned to self-administer 24 international units of either OT or a placebo (P) intranasally twice daily for four weeks. The Experiences in Close Relationships Scale assessed adult attachment (anxiety and avoidance) pre- and post-treatment. There was no significant pre- to post-treatment change in attachment avoidance overall, but the treatment x timepoint x sex interaction was significant, in that women (but not men) in the OT (vs. P) group reported decreased attachment avoidance. No comparable effects were observed for attachment anxiety. Results suggest that older women may benefit from chronic intranasal OT treatment by experiencing less attachment avoidance in their adult relationships.