Attachment-related Differences Research Articles

Attachment and propensity for reporting compassionate opportunities and behavior in everyday life.

Researchers have identified links between anxious and avoidant attachments and difficulties with self-compassion, giving others compassion, and receiving compassion. However, while compassion requires both awareness of opportunities for compassion and compassionate action, little is known about attachment-related differences in reporting compassionate opportunities. Further, most research relies on retrospective-reports that may not accurately assess compassionate behaviors in everyday life. Consequently, we collected 2,757 experience sampling survey responses from 125 participants (95 women, 27 men, 3 non-binary, M age = 18.74, SD age = 1.66) to investigate whether attachment anxiety, avoidance, or their interaction were associated with differences in propensity for reporting compassionate opportunities, actions, and emotional responses to opportunities in everyday life across self-compassion, giving compassion, and receiving compassion. Anxiety was associated with greater likelihood of reporting all types of compassionate opportunities and less positive responses to opportunities to receive compassion. Avoidance was associated with less likelihood of reporting opportunities to give and receive compassion and less positive responses to opportunities to give compassion. Those high in anxiety but simultaneously low in avoidance reported fewer self-compassionate actions, but we identified no further differences in compassionate action. This study highlights the potential role of awareness of compassionate opportunities in attachment-related differences in compassion.

Attachment-Related Differences in Emotion Regulation in Adults: A Systematic Review on Attachment Representations.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the prevalence of mental disorders connected with affective dysregulation and insecure attachment. Therefore, it is even more important to understand the interplay between an individual's attachment representation and patterns of emotion regulation. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic review to examine this association. PsycInfo, PsyArticles, and PubMed were searched for studies that examined attachment-related differences in emotion regulation in adults. To examine the unconscious attachment representation, only studies using the Adult Attachment Interview or the Adult Attachment Projective Picture System were included. Thirty-seven peer-reviewed studies (with a total of 2006 subjects) matched the PICO criteria. Emotion regulation was measured via four objective approaches: autonomic nervous system, brain activity, biochemistry, or nonverbal behavior. Across all measurements, results reveal a significant correlation between attachment representation and emotion regulation. Secure attachment correlates consistently with balanced emotion regulation, whereas it is impaired in insecure and dysfunctional in unresolved attachment. Specifically, unresolved individuals display counterintuitive responses and fail to use attachment as a resource. Insecure-dismissing attachment is associated with an emotionally deactivating strategy, while on a physiological, biochemical, and nonverbal level, emotional stress is still present. There is still a lack of studies examining preoccupied individuals. In addition to interpreting the results, we also discuss the risk of bias, implications for psychotherapy and coaching, and an outlook for future research.

Do attachment-related differences in reflective functioning explain associations between expressed emotion and youth self-harm?

Youth self-harm is associated with poor health outcomes and attempted and completed suicide. Associations exist between self-harm and expressed emotion (EE), attachment insecurity, and reflective functioning (RF), but these associations are poorly understood. This study evaluates a mediation model in which perceived caregiver EE (pEE) exerts an indirect effect on youth self-harm through attachment insecurity and RF uncertainty. 461 participants aged 16–24 years completed an online survey. Statistical analyses revealed significant direct effects of pEE on attachment insecurity, and of RF uncertainty on self-harm; however, some direct effects were specific to pEE from female caregivers, and attachment insecurity in youth relationships with female caregivers. A significant direct effect of pEE on self-harm was found for pEE from male caregivers only. Significant indirect effects of pEE on self-harm through attachment anxiety and RF uncertainty were found only in relation to female caregivers. The findings encourage family-, attachment-, and mentalization-based approaches to preventing and treating youth self-harm, with a recommendation that caregivers are given adequate support, education, and skills-based training following youth disclosures of self-harm.

Attachment-related differences in dispositional anger and its experience and expression following an insult-based anger induction

Variation in how individuals experience and express anger has been linked to their attachment style, particularly in close interpersonal contexts. However, little research has investigated attachment-related differences in anger and aggression in non-attachment-based settings. This multi-method investigation reports two studies. The first investigated associations between anger and adult attachment dimensions in 270 participants. The second describes a lab-based anger provocation task which examined associations between attachment and pre-post-test change in self-reported anger, physiological responses, anger suppression and aggressive responding (N = 77). Results from study 1 indicate that attachment anxiety was a significant independent predictor of trait anger, while attachment avoidance was not. There were no significant interaction effects, suggesting distinct effects of attachment dimensions on anger. In study 2, attachment avoidance was negatively related to anger change scores from baseline to post-provocation and positively to anger suppression. Attachment anxiety was positively associated with aggressive responding. These findings support the high arousal-low control style previously associated with attachment anxiety, evidenced by elevated trait anger and aggressive responding. They also align with previous studies that support an association between attachment avoidance and emotion suppression, suggesting that the attachment framework can be usefully extended to understand anger and aggression in non-attachment-based contexts.

Disorganized attachment behaviors in infancy as predictors of brain morphology and peer rejection in late childhood.

Studies show robust links between disorganized attachment in infancy and socioemotional maladjustment in childhood. Little is known, however, about the links between disorganized attachment and brain development, and whether attachment-related differences in brain morphology translate into meaningful variations in child socioemotional functioning. This study examined the links between infants' disorganized attachment behaviors toward their mothers, whole-brain regional grey matter volume and thickness, and peer rejection in late childhood. Thirty-three children and their mothers took part in this study. The Strange Situation Procedure was used to assess mother-infant attachment when infants were 18 months old. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed when they were 10 years old to assess cortical thickness and grey matter volumes. Children and teachers reported on peer rejection 1 year later, as an indicator of socioemotional maladjustment. Results indicated that disorganized attachment was not associated with grey matter volumes. However, children who exhibited more disorganized attachment behaviors in infancy had significantly thicker cortices in bilateral middle and superior frontal gyri, and extending to theinferior frontal gyrus, as well as the orbitofrontal and insular cortices in the right hemisphere in late childhood. Moreover, children with thicker cortices in these regions experienced greater peer rejection, as rated by themselves and their teachers. Although preliminary, these results are the first to indicate that disorganized attachment may play a role in cortical thickness development and that changes in cortical thickness are associated with differences in child socioemotional functioning.

Attached to dating apps: Attachment orientations and preferences for dating apps

Our study examines attachment-related differences in the use of dating applications (dating apps). We collected online survey data regarding people’s attachment orientation and dating app preferences. People with a more anxious attachment orientation were more likely to report using dating apps than people lower in anxious attachment; people with a more avoidant attachment orientation were less likely to report using dating apps than people lower in avoidant attachment. Participants who used dating apps cited Tinder, OkCupid, and Plenty of Fish as those most commonly used. The most common reason people reported for using apps was to meet others, and the most common reason people reported for not using apps was difficulty trusting people online. Our findings suggest that individual differences in attachment may be relevant for understanding online behavior, and that dating apps might be a fruitful avenue for future research on attachment-related differences.

Attachment insecurity and dispositional aggression: The mediating role of maladaptive anger regulation

Attachment insecurity has been associated with dysfunctional strategies for emotion regulation, leading to inflexible or maladaptive responding. Currently, application of the attachment framework to anger is underspecified. This study presents a preliminary investigation of attachment-related differences in the dispositional regulation of anger and aggressive outcomes. Two hundred seventy participants completed measures of adult attachment (attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance), anger regulation processes (anger suppression, unregulated anger, and anger control), and aggressive outcomes (physical aggression, verbal aggression, and hostility). While those high in attachment anxiety have been found to under-regulate other negative emotions, our results postulate that these individuals may implement a suppression strategy when faced with the experience of anger. Mediation models indicate that anger suppression is implicated in the relationship between attachment dimensions and hostility but not physical aggression. This supports the notion that suppression may be useful in reducing the external expression of anger but cannot alleviate the associated internal cognitions. These findings suggest that levels of attachment anxiety and avoidance should be considered when identifying techniques to target specific anger regulatory difficulties that contribute to increased aggression. Further, consideration and exploration of the role of security priming is encouraged as a possible mechanism by which to reduce dispositional hostility in those with high levels of attachment insecurity.

Attachment quality is related to the synchrony of mother and infant monitoring patterns

ABSTRACTWe investigated whether attachment quality is related to infant–mother dyadic patterns in monitoring animated social situations. Sixty 12-month-old infants and their mothers participated in an eye-tracking study in which they watched abstractly depicted distress interactions involving the separation of a “baby” and a “parent” character followed by reunion or further separation of the two characters. We measured infants’ and their mothers’ relative fixation duration to the two characters in the animations. We found that infant attachment disorganization moderated the correspondence between the monitoring patterns of infant–mother dyads during the final part of the animations resulting in reunion or separation. Organized infants and their mothers showed complementary monitoring patterns: the more the mothers focused their attention on the “baby” character, the more the infants focused their attention on the “parent” character, and vice versa. Disorganized infant–mother dyads showed the opposite pattern although the correlation was nonsignificant: mothers and their infants focused on the same character. The attachment-related differences in the nature of the synchrony in the attentional processes of infants and their mothers suggest that by 12 months the dyads’ representations of social situations reflect their shared social–emotional experiences.

Recalling support provision decreases distress and anger in response to partner suffering

ABSTRACTObjectives: Thinking about a loved one's suffering can be emotionally stressful and have negative effects on a person's psychological and physical health over time. This study examined the hypotheses that when thinking about a partner's suffering (1) recalling past support provision to the suffering partner can decrease distress and anger and increase compassion, and (2) attachment orientation moderates these effects.Method: Seventy-seven older adult spouses of individuals with chronic pain were video-recorded while they disclosed: (1) an instance of partner suffering and (2) an instance of partner suffering plus their support provision. Compassion for the partner and their own distress and anger were self-reported immediately after each account. Accounts were coded for statements of support. Attachment was assessed with the Experiences with Close Relationships measure.Results: As hypothesized, distress and anger were lower in the ‘suffering with support’ condition versus the ‘suffering only’ condition. There was no evidence that attachment orientation significantly moderated the effect of support recollection on emotional responses; however, more avoidant individuals reported less compassion and anger and used more words reflecting anger across conditions. More anxiously attached individuals reported greater compassion across conditions.Conclusion: When thinking about a partner's suffering, there are attachment-related differences in emotional reactions. Yet, regardless of these differences, it may be adaptive for spouses to think about their role in providing support to their partner to decrease their own negative emotions.

Attachment status and mother–preschooler parasympathetic response to the strange situation procedure

BackgroundEarly attachment relationships are important for children's development of behavioral and physiological regulation strategies. Parasympathetic nervous system activity, indexed by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), is a key indicator of self-regulation, with links to numerous developmental outcomes. Attachment-related changes in and associations between mother and child RSA during the Strange Situation procedure (SSP) can elucidate individual differences in physiological response to stress that are important for understanding the development of and intervention for psychopathology. MethodsA sample of 142 at-risk mothers and preschool-age children participated in the SSP and provided time-synchronized RSA data during the 7 episodes, which included 2 separations and 2 reunions. Attachment classifications were obtained using the Cassidy et al. (1992) coding system. Linear mixed-effects models were constructed to examine attachment-related change in RSA during the SSP and the concordance between mother and child RSA over time. ResultsFindings demonstrated attachment-related differences in children's RSA. Secure children's RSA was relatively stable over time, whereas insecure-avoidant children showed RSA increases during the first separation and insecure-resistant children's RSA declined across the SSP. Mothers showed RSA withdrawal during separation regardless of child's attachment classification. Mother–child RSA showed a positive concordance that was strongest in the insecure-resistant group, compared with the other groups. ConclusionsResults support attachment theories concerning parasympathetic response to stress and the role of the mother–child relationship in physiological regulation. Our findings advance previous research by focusing on at-risk mother–preschooler dyads within diverse attachment classifications.

Attachment and alexithymia are related, but mind-mindedness does not mediate this relationship

Abstract The main aim of the study was to check: (a) attachment-related differences in alexithymia and (b) the mediating role of mind-mindedness in attachment-alexithymia relationship. Method: Attachment (PAM; Berry et al., 2007), alexithymia (TAS-20; Bagby, Taylor, & Parker, 1994) and mind-mindedness (“describe your friend” method; Meins et al, 2008) were measured in the sample of 128 Polish undergraduates. Results: Positive associations were seen between attachment anxiety and overall alexithymia scores and difficulty identifying emotions. Attachment avoidance was positively associated with overall alexithymia score, difficulty describing feelings and externally oriented thinking. Mind-mindedness was not related to neither attachment or alexithymia. Conclusion: There are attachment-related differences in alexithymia, but mind-mindedness seems not to mediate attachment-alexithymia relationship.

Individual differences in the regulation of positive emotion: The role of attachment and self esteem

Individual differences in the regulation of positive emotion are associated with psychological resilience and well being. This study investigated the relationship between attachment, self esteem and gender and the regulation of positive emotion. 174 participants completed an online battery measuring attachment avoidance and anxiety, global self esteem and positive emotion regulation strategies (dampening and savouring). Moderating moderation analyses indicated that attachment insecurity was associated with maladaptive regulation of positive emotion. Savouring of positive emotion was predicted by attachment avoidance but not anxiety. Dampening of positive emotion was predicted by avoidance and self esteem and by the interaction of attachment anxiety with self esteem. Correlations between attachment and specific dampening and savouring strategies are discussed. The results are discussed within the broader context of attachment-related differences in emotion regulation.

Preschool ambivalent attachment associated with a lack of vagal withdrawal in response to stress

The goal of the present study was to examine how quality of the child–caregiver attachment relationship related to children’s cardiac vagal reactivity in response to a novel social stressor. Children’s (N = 48; Mage = 3 years 9 months) cardiac data were collected as they participated in an ambiguous and potentially threatening social situation together with their mothers. Their degree of behavioral inhibition also was observed. Attachment classifications were assessed separately. Children classified as Secure showed vagal withdrawal from baseline to the stressor, whereas children classified as Ambivalent did not show vagal withdrawal in response to the stressor. There was a marginally significant moderation of attachment-related differences in vagal withdrawal by level of behavioral inhibition. Among highly behaviorally inhibited children, those classified as Ambivalent demonstrated little or no vagal withdrawal compared to their Secure counterparts. In contrast, no attachment-related differences were found among those who appeared less behaviorally inhibited. Findings are discussed in relation to children’s emerging self-regulation skills in the context of their attachment relationship.

Too close for comfort? Adult attachment and cuddling in romantic and parent–child relationships

Close physical contact is a defining feature of intimate relationships across the lifespan and occurs in nearly all kinds of close relationships. However, there are important individual differences in the extent to which people feel comfortable engaging in intimate interactions. In two samples, attachment avoidance was associated with less positive feelings toward cuddling in adult romantic relationships (Sample 1) and parent–child relationships (Sample 2); attachment anxiety was largely unrelated to feelings about cuddling across relationships. Moreover, the magnitude of the associations between attachment avoidance and feelings about cuddling was similar across relationship types. The current study highlights the similarities in people’s use of intimate touch across relationships, namely to communicate affection, trust, and responsiveness to their loved ones. Yet we also identified important attachment-related differences in feelings about intimate touch. The current findings suggest several new directions for future research on the benefits of interpersonal touch.

Adult attachment status predicts the developmental trajectory of maternal sensitivity in new motherhood among Chinese mothers

Objectiveto investigate adult attachment status in first-time mothers, and stability and/or changes in maternal sensitivity during infancy. Designlongitudinal study using quantitative and qualitative methods, and statistical modelling. Three home visits were undertaken when the infant was approximately six, nine and 14 months old. The Adult-to-Parental Attachment Experience Survey was used, and scores for three dimensions were obtained: secure-autonomous, preoccupied and dismissive. Maternal sensitivity was assessed at each time point using the Maternal Behaviour Q-Sort by observing interaction between the mother and infant at home. Settinghomes and community settings in greater metropolitan Beijing, North China. Participants83 mothers and infants born in 2010 enrolled in this study. Data were missing for one or more time points in 20 cases. Findingsthe mean score for maternal sensitivity tended to increase from six to 14 months. Post-hoc analyses of one-way repeated-measures analysis of variance revealed that maternal sensitivity was significantly higher at 14 months than at six or nine months. An unconditional latent growth model (LGM) of maternal sensitivity, estimated using the Bayesian approach, provided a good fit for the data. Using three attachment-related variables as predictors in the conditional LGM, the model fitting indices were found to be sufficient, and the results suggested that the secure score positively predicted the intercept of the growth model, and the dismissive score negatively predicted both the intercept and slope of the growth model. Key conclusionsmaternal sensitivity increased over time during infancy. Furthermore, individual differences existed in the developmental trajectory, which was influenced by maternal attachment status. Implications for practiceknowledge about attachment-related differences in the trajectory of first-time mothers׳ sensitivity to infants may help midwives and doctors to provide individualised information and support, with special attention given to mothers with a dismissive attachment status.

Dispositional Attachment Orientations, Contextual Variations in Attachment Security, and Compassion Fatigue Among Volunteers Working With Traumatized Individuals

In the present article, we report a series of studies examining the links between attachment orientations and compassion fatigue among volunteers working with traumatized individuals. Participants were volunteers in several trauma-related organizations, ranging in age from 18 to 69 years. In Study 1 (N = 148), we examined associations between self-reports of attachment insecurities and compassion fatigue. In Study 2 (N = 54), we used a diary design to assess attachment-related differences in emotional reactions to actual helping encounters over a 2-month period. In Study 3 (N = 108), we examined the effects of the experimental enhancement of attachment security (security priming) on reactions to a hypothetical helping encounter. As expected, attachment insecurities, either anxiety or avoidance, were associated with heightened compassion fatigue. Moreover, security priming reduced compassion fatigue in response to a hypothetical helping encounter. These findings underscore the relevance of attachment theory for understanding and preventing compassion fatigue.

Adult attachment and emotion regulation: better predictors of subjective or objective health?

Background: Although patterns of relating – attachments – appear useful in predicting health outcomes, studies are yet to evaluate whether attachment characteristics predict both objective and subjective outcomes equally. Further, although prior work has identified trait emotionality as a contributing factor, the possibility that attachment related differences in emotion regulation are associated with health outcomes has not been investigated. Methods: Between 2002 and 2004, 616 older men and women completed measures of attachment along with demographics, health reports, and measures of emotion regulation. Results: Analysis (conducted in 2012) revealed that both security and fearful avoidance predicted better subjective health, while preoccupied attachment predicted worse subjective and objective health outcomes. Conclusions: Attachment dimensions predicted health even when controlling for demographic factors, but were a better predictor of subjective than objective health outcomes. The inclusion of regulatory factors weakened some links between attachment and health, suggesting that patterns of emotion regulation may play a role in attachment – health links. Directions for future research and implications are discussed.

Attachment-related differences in perceptions of an initial peer interaction emerge over time: Evidence of reconstructive memory processes in adolescents.

This study examined whether attachment, assessed using the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI; George, Kaplan, & Main, 1996) was linked to how adolescents reconstructed their memory for an initial interaction with an unfamiliar peer. Adolescents (N = 189, 62% female) completed a 10-min laboratory task with a student whom they did not know. Immediately following this task, adolescents rated their perceptions of the interaction. Adolescents completed the same perception measure 2 weeks later. Although adolescents classified as secure and insecure on the AAI did not differ in how they perceived unfamiliar peers initially, attachment-related differences emerged over time. Insecure adolescents remembered the interactions as less positive and more negative and also reported being treated with greater hostility than they had initially reported 2 weeks earlier. In contrast, secure adolescents' memories for the negative aspects of the interaction and for hostile treatment remained stable, although, like insecure adolescents, they remembered the conflicts as being less positive than initially reported.

Child anger proneness moderates associations between child-mother attachment security and child behavior with mothers at 33 months.

Child-mother attachment security, assessed via a modified Strange Situation procedure (Cassidy & Marvin, with the MacArthur Attachment Working Group, 1992), and parent-reported child proneness to anger were examined as correlates of observed child behavior toward mothers during a series of interactive tasks (N = 120, 60 girls). Controlling for maternal sensitivity and child gender and expressive language ability, greater attachment security, and lower levels of anger proneness were related to more child responsiveness to maternal requests and suggestions during play and snack sessions. As hypothesized, anger proneness also moderated several security-behavior associations. Greater attachment security was related to (a) more committed compliance during clean-up and snack-delay tasks for children high on anger proneness, (b) more self-assertiveness during play and snack for children moderate or high on anger proneness, and (c) more help-seeking during play and snack for children moderate or low on anger proneness. Findings further our understanding of the behavioral correlates of child-mother attachment security assessed during late toddlerhood via the Cassidy-Marvin system and underscore child anger proneness as a moderator of attachment-related differences in child behavior during this developmental period.

The neural substrates of social emotion perception and regulation are modulated by adult attachment style

Adult attachment style (AAS) refers to individual differences in the way people experience and regulate their social relationships and corresponding emotions. Based on developmental and psychological research, it has been hypothesized that avoidant attachment style (AV) entails deactivating strategies in social contexts, whereas anxious attachment style (AX) involves hyper vigilance and up-regulation mechanisms. However, the neural substrates of differences in social emotion regulation associated with AAS have not been systematically investigated. Here we used fMRI in 19 healthy adults to investigate the effect of AAS on the processing of pleasant or unpleasant social and nonsocial scenes. Participants were asked either to naturally attend (NAT), cognitively reappraise (REAP), or behaviorally suppress (ESUP) their emotional responses. Avoidantly attached participants showed increased prefrontal and anterior cingulate activation to social negative scenes when making spontaneous emotion judgments. They also exhibited persistent increases in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and left amygdala activity for the same stimuli during reappraisal, as well as additional activation in supplementary motor area and ventral caudate during the suppression of social positive emotions. These results suggest that AV may imply less efficient reappraisal strategies to regulate social negative emotions, and lead to higher conflict or effortful control when suppression cannot be employed. In contrast, anxiously attached participants showed differential increases in the right amygdala and left parahippocampal cortex for social negative and positive stimuli, respectively, but only when making spontaneous emotion judgments. No effect of AX was found during down-regulation conditions. This suggests heightened arousal to negative information without difficulty in down-regulating emotions through cognitive re-evaluation or suppression. Taken together, these findings reveal for the first time the neural underpinnings of attachment-related differences in social emotion regulation.