Women's Attachment Style Research Articles

Attachment styles in Tunisian women with schizophrenia

IntroductionAttachment refers to the emotional bond between a child and their primary caregiver, reflecting the child’s confidence in the caregiver’s capacity to offer security. Evaluating attachment styles in individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders holds significance in pinpointing a potential factor affecting therapeutic relationships. This, in turn, indirectly aids in comprehending the emergence of low adherence as a significant barrier to schizophreniaObjectivesThe goal of this study is to assess attachment styles in women with schizophrenia spectrum disorders.MethodsWe conducted a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study at the Psychiatry “B” department of Hedi Chaker University Hospital in Sfax, Tunisia, during May and June 2023. Our study involved stabilized female patients diagnosed with either schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. We utilized the 26-item Revised Psychosis Attachment Measure (PAM_R) questionnaire translated into Arabic and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) score to assess schizophrenic symptoms.ResultsWe enrolled a total of 41 female patients in our study, with 65.9% diagnosed with schizophrenia and 34.2% with schizoaffective disorder. The average age of the participants was 49.19 years, ranging from 17 to 79 years old. In terms of attachment styles, avoidant attachment was the most prevalent (60.97%), followed by anxious attachment (24.39%), and disorganized attachment (14.63%). Our study revealed significant associations between avoidant attachment and several factors. Patients who began psychiatric follow-up with hospitalization had a significantly higher level of avoidant attachment compared to those starting with outpatient consultation (p < 0.001). The type of therapy also influenced avoidant attachment, with a significant difference (p < 0.001). Insight into their condition also played a significant role (p < 0.001). Moreover, the age at which psychiatric follow-up began showed a statistically significant correlation with avoidant attachment (Spearman’s ρ = 0.000, p < 0.001). Individuals with higher avoidant attachment tended to have a longer duration of untreated psychosis, supported by a statistically significant positive correlation (Spearman’s ρ = 0.082, p < 0.001). There was also a statistically significant relationship between avoidant attachment and the equivalent dose of chlorpromazine, with a positive correlation (Spearman’s ρ = 0.091, p < 0.001), indicating that individuals with higher avoidant attachment may require higher equivalent doses of chlorpromazine. Finally, higher levels of avoidant attachment were associated with a lower presence of positive symptoms in schizophrenia (Spearman’s ρ = -0.026, p < 0.001).ConclusionsInsecure attachment is a valuable mechanism for understanding the evolution of schizophrenia spectrum phenomenology and may be a useful target for prophylactic interventions.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

KADINLARDA BAĞLANMA STİLLERİ VE SİNDERELLA SENDROMU

Bağımsızlıktan korkan kadınları ifade eden “Sinderella Sendromu”, kadınların yaşadıkları olumsuzluklara rağmen bir gün bir erkek tarafından kurtarılmayı bekleyen ve psikolojik bağımlı özellikte olduğunu gösteren bir kavram olarak karşımıza çıkmaktadır. Bu araştırmada Sinderella Sendromunun bağlanma stilleri açısından incelenmesi amaçlanmıştır. İlişkisel tarama modeli kullanılarak gerçekleştirilen bu araştırmaya, uygun örnekleme yöntemi ile ulaşılan 25 yaş üstü 431 yetişkin kadın katılmıştır. Veriler “Sinderella Sendromu Ölçeği” ve “Üç Boyutlu Bağlanma Stilleri Ölçeği” aracılığıyla toplanmıştır. Elde edilen bulgulara göre Sinderella sendromunun tüm alt boyutları ile kaçınan ve kaygılı bağlanma stilleri arasında anlamlı düzeyde ve pozitif yönde korelasyon olduğu belirlenmiştir. Kaçınan ve kaygılı bağlanma stili, Sinderella sendromunun %6.4’ünü açıklamaktadır. Ebeveynleri ayrı olan ve ebeveyni vefat etmiş olan kadınların kariyerden vazgeçme puanlarının ebeveynleri birlikte olan kadınlara göre anlamlı ölçüde daha yüksek olduğu; üniversite mezunlarının Sinderella Sendromu düzeyinin daha düşük olduğu belirlenmiştir. Araştırma sonuçları Sinderella Sendromuyla da ilişkili görünen toplumsal cinsiyet rollerinin bağlanma stilleriyle ilişkisi ele alınarak yorumlanmıştır.

Comparison of primary maladaptive schemas and attachment styles of women involved in emotional relationships with an age gap of 10 years or less and an age gap of 15 years or more (with male age advantage)

Aim: The current study aimed to compare early maladaptive schemas and attachment styles in women involved in romantic relationships with an age difference of 10 years or less and an age difference of 15 years or more (with the man being older). Method: This study was causal-comparative in nature; the statistical population comprised 91 individuals, with 50 women involved in romantic relationships with an age difference of 10 years or less (Group One) and 41 women in relationships with an age difference of 15 years or more (Group Two). Participants were selected through convenient and snowball sampling methods and responded to the Hazan and Shaver Attachment Styles Questionnaire (1987) and Young’s 90-item Schema Questionnaire (1990). Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) with SPSS software. Results: The findings indicated significant differences between the two groups in the anxious/ambivalent attachment style and avoidant attachment style components (P<0.01). There were significant differences between the two groups in the components of emotional deprivation, mistrust, social isolation, defectiveness/shame, failure, dependence, vulnerability, emotional inhibition, entitlement/grandiosity, and self-sacrifice (P<0.05). However, there were no significant differences between the groups in the secure attachment style and components of abandonment, self-sacrifice, compliance, unrelenting standards, attention seeking, pessimism, and punishment (P>0.05). Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that there are differences between early maladaptive schemas and attachment styles in women involved in romantic relationships with a minor and a greater age difference (with the man being older). The findings underscore the importance of schema-focused and emotion-focused approaches in resolving interpersonal conflicts in couples with significant age differences.

Women's Attachment Style and Dyadic Adjustment: The Mediator Role of Perceived Efficacy in Solving Marital Conflicts

In this study, we examined perceived efficacy in solving marital conflicts as a mediator between adult attachment style and dyadic adjustment, while controlling for the effects of duration of marriage. A total of 1921 married women participated in the research. The results suggest that women with high attachment avoidance are more likely to perceive themselves as inefficient in marital conflict resolution and maladjusted to the dyadic relationship, compared to women with high attachment anxiety. Furthermore, the results suggest that perceived efficacy in solving marital conflicts mediates the effects of insecure attachment styles on dyadic adjustment. Finally, there is evidence for a reciprocal causation between efficacy expectations and dyadic adjustment.

Depressive Symptoms and Quality of Life in a Sample of Italian Women with a Diagnosis of Fibromyalgia: The Role of Attachment Styles.

Background Women with fibromyalgia (FM) commonly suffer from depression, pervasive fatigue, and pain. The attachment style has been hypothesized to be an important factor for understanding the experience of these symptoms. Therefore, the present cross-sectional study is aimed at investigating the effect of attachment styles in women with a diagnosis of FM on depressive symptoms and quality of life. Method Participants were 453 Italian women with a physician's diagnosis of FM with a mean age of 47 years (SD = 10.9). To assess attachment styles, quality of life, and depressive symptoms, women responded, respectively, to the Relationship Questionnaire, the World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory II. Results Our results showed that the incidence of depressive symptoms was elevated, with 59% of women reporting moderate to severe symptoms. Also, the statistical analyses showed that both preoccupied and avoidant/dismissing attachments were related with depression symptoms and low perception of QoL. Conclusions Our study demonstrates that, when evaluating the impact of FM on the QoL of women, it is important to consider the complexity of the variables that are at play. Insecure attachment styles and depressive symptoms seem to increase the likelihood of the psycho-social-somatic malaise in FM women.

Accuracy and bias in first impressions of attachment style from faces.

People gather important social information from subtle nonverbal cues. Given that one's attachment style can meaningfully affect the quality of one's relationships, we investigated whether people could perceive men's and women's attachment styles from photos of their neutral faces. In two studies, we measured targets' attachment styles then asked participants (total N=893) to judge the male and female targets' attachment anxiety and avoidance from photos of their neutral faces (total N=331) and to report their own attachment anxiety and avoidance. Participants detected men's attachment style from face photos significantly better than chance in an initial exploratory study and in a preregistered replication but did not consistently detect women's attachment style from their face photos. Moreover, participants' own attachment style biased these first impressions: Individuals with greater attachment anxiety viewed others as more anxiously attached. People can detect some hints of unacquainted others' attachment styles from their faces but their own anxious attachment can bias these judgments.

Men's Sexual Coerciveness, Perceptions of Women's Attachment, and Dating Preferences.

This study examined whether sexually coercive men are uniquely drawn to certain attachment styles in women. Specifically, it employed an experimental design to investigate what sorts of inferences men draw about women based on women's attachment styles and whether a woman's attachment style may serve as an indicator of vulnerability, rendering sexually coercive men more attracted to some women than to others. One-hundred thirty-six college men completed a measure of sexual coerciveness and answered questions about personal ads experimentally manipulated for portrayed attachment style. Findings suggest that sexually coercive men may be more attracted to women with characteristics associated with sexual vulnerability. Additionally, men perceive women differently based on their attachment styles, and sexually coercive men may perceive women differently than do other men.

Attachment styles in women with vaginismus

Objective:Attachment styles reflect individual differences in beliefs about oneself and others, interpersonal functioning and close relationships. This study intended to investigate attachment styles of vaginismus patients. Methods: Our sample was included 56 patients with vaginismus and 51 healthy women. Golombok Rust Inventory of Sexual Satisfaction Scale (GRISS) and Relationship Scales Questionnaire (RSQ) were administered to the patients and healthy control group. Results: The scores of the vaginismus group for secure attachment scores were statistically significantly lower than the healthy control group (p=0.041) while there was no difference between the groups for the fearful, preoccupied and dismissive attachment subscale scores (p= 0.071, p= 0.14, p= 0.114 respectively). GRISS total and subscale scores were statistically higher in women with an insecure attachment style when the total sample as divided into two groups as secure and insecure attached individuals.Conclusions: These findings taken together support the notion that insecure attachment may be an important factor in the pathogenesis of vaginismus.

The role of attachment style in women’s recognition of sexism

The present research examined how differences in attachment style might impact women’s awareness of sexism. Identity threat models of stigma emphasize the role of individual differences in responding to social identity threats, however little is known about what factors lead to avoidance versus vigilance for such threats. Furthermore, research shows that insecure attachment is related to avoidant responses to blatantly threatening cues, but vigilance when such cues are ambiguous. Thus, insecurely attached women should acknowledge less sexism toward women when faced with instances of blatant sexism, whereas their awareness should be heightened by instances of ambiguous sexism. Conversely, securely attached women should acknowledge sexism when encountering blatant rather than ambiguous instances of sexism. In a test of these hypotheses, 155 women were exposed to either a male verbally rejecting a women’s opinion for blatantly sexist or ambiguously sexist reasons. The data confirm predictions. The findings suggest interventions to improve outcomes for stigmatized groups should consider impacts of attachment style, and further, that attachment style might partially explain women’s divergent responses to sexism.

RETRACTED: Attachment Styles, Pain, and the Consumption of Analgesics During Labor: A Prospective Observational Study

Individuals with less secure attachment styles have been shown to experience more pain than people with more secure attachment styles; however, attachment styles have not yet been examined in the context of labor pain and analgesic consumption. The purpose of this prospective observational study was to assess the influence of the mother's attachment style on the perception of labor pain, as assessed by a visual analog scale and analgesic consumption. Eighty-one pregnant women with a mean age of 32years (standard deviation =5.1) were assessed during the third trimester of pregnancy and during labor. The physical predictors of labor pain were recorded, and the adult attachment style was assessed with the Adult Attachment Scale-Revised. For labor analgesia, a low dose of patient-controlled epidural analgesia protocol (ropivacaine .6mg/mL plus sufentanil .5μg/mL) was used. Women with a secure attachment style reported significantly less labor pain (P<.001) and a significantly lower analgesic consumption during labor (P<.001) than insecurely attached women. These findings suggest that women's attachment style was associated with labor pain and analgesic consumption and support the relevance of the attachment theory as a promising conceptual framework for understanding labor pain. This study showed that women with an insecure attachment style were more likely to report higher pain before patient-controlled epidural analgesia and higher analgesic consumption and to request supplemental analgesia during labor. The assessment of adult attachment has the potential to identify women at high risk of poorly coping with pain during childbirth.

EPA-0949 - Relationship between primary infertility and attachment style in women

Objective In this study, women with primary infertility compared with fertile women in terms of their attachment style and psychopathology. Furthermore, the relationship between psychopathology and attachment style is also investigated in women with primary infertility. Methods Forty-eight primary infertile women admitted to the infertility clinic for in vitro fertilization (IVF) or Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) treatment were consecutively enrolled. Diagnosis of primary infertility in women was determined by Gynecologists and it is defined as undetermined cause of infertility in men and women despite necessary laboratory investigations. The control group consisted of 48 women with at least one living child, who had become pregnant through natural methods and having no previous psychiatric admission. Control group is matched with primary infertile women in terms of their age and level of education. Socio-demographic characteristics and clinical features of the study group and the control group were determined. Symptom Checklist 90R (SCL-90-R), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Adult Attachment Style Questionnaire (AAS) were given to the both groups. These scales' scores were compared between infertile and fertile groups. Results No significant difference was found between primary infertile and fertile women in terms of secure, avoidant, anxious-ambivalent attachment scores. Secure attachment scores in both groups were higher than other forms of attachment. Insecure attachment scores were associated with the increasing level of psychopathology in primary infertile women. Conclusion We suggest that management of insecure attachment should positively affect the chances of pregnancy in primary infertile women.

Comparison of Attachment Styles and Personality Sides between Women Who are Victim of Domestic Violence and Ordinary Women

The aim of the current study is Comparison of attachment styles and personality dimensions in women who are victim of family violence and ordinary women. The approach is causal-comparative. Statistic population of the research included all women who referred to Tabriz family court as violence victims during year 2010. Descriptive statistic tests, CHI-SQUARE tests and multivariate analysis of variance were applied to data analysis. Results proved a significant difference between ordinary women and those of violence victim in all personality dimensions. In conclusion the account of an insecure type of attachment style in women who suffered from violence not only caused a cold relationship but also lowered devotion and commitment level and ultimately occurred a malformed type of behaviour as violence. Women those of suffered from violence with a high neurosis potential, low amiability level, lack of flexibility and low level of extravagancy cause a poor matrimony and create circumstance for family violence with constant arguments.

The Relationship Between Attachment Styles and Sex Guilt Among Iranian Women

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between sex guilt and attachment styles. The data presented here were obtained from a total of 192 married Iranian women who were selected via a multi-cluster sampling method from three universities in Tehran. The subjects’ socio-demographic data, attachment styles (Adult Attachment Styles Index), and sex guilt (Mosher Revised Sex-Guilt Inventory) was gathered. Findings showed significant relationships between sex guilt and secure attachment style (r=−0.265, p<0.01), Insecure-ambivalent attachment style (r=0.241, p<0.01) and insecure-avoidant attachment style (r=0.257, p<0.01). Also there were significant relationships between sex guilt and age (r=0.438, p<0.01) and marital duration (r=0.345, p<0.01). Age, insecure-ambivalent and insecure-avoidant attachment styles were able to predict 25.1 percent of the variance of sex guilt. In conclusion, higher scores in secure attachment styles in women are associated with lower scores of sex guilt and higher scores in insecure-ambivalent and insecure-avoidant attachment styles are associated with higher levels of sex guilt among women. Also, age and marital duration are positively correlated with sex guilt in women.

Characteristics of Attachment Style in Women With Dyspareunia

In this study, the authors explored the relations among painful experience during sexual intercourse, attachment style, and somatization. The authors assessed these variables by self-report of dyspareunia (painful vaginal intercourse) and by completion of the Experience in Close Relationships Scale and the short version of the Brief Symptom Inventory. The sample included 110 women, 45 of whom reported painful intercourse and were defined as the dyspareunia group, and the remaining 65 were defined as the control group. The dyspareunia group showed greater incidence, compared with the control group, of insecure attachment styles defined by higher scores of anxiety and/or avoidance as well as higher somatization levels. Regression analyses revealed that increased level of somatization and higher level of avoidance predicted higher probability for dyspareunia. The authors’ findings suggest that women with higher frequency of physical complaints in various body areas and insecure attachment style are more susceptible to report pain during intercourse.

Investigating the role of attachment in social comparison theories of eating disorders within a non‐clinical female population

The present study aimed to integrate attachment theory and sociocultural theory as predictors of disordered eating, thereby combining two previously distinct literatures in order to provide a more comprehensive model of eating disorder development. It was specifically proposed that women's attachment style may influence their tendency to socially compare themselves to idealized others. Participants (N = 213) were non-clinical female undergraduates. Sociocultural attitudes to appearance, social comparison, attachment and eating disorder symptomatology were assessed using self-report questionnaires. Consistent with the hypothesis, social comparison was found to mediate the relationship between attachment anxiety and disordered eating. In addition, attachment avoidance, was not significantly associated with either internalisation of cultural ideals or social comparison but was significantly related to eating psychopathology. The findings suggest that attachment anxiety and avoidance influence disordered eating via different pathways, with attachment anxiety specifically being implicated in sociocultural models of disordered eating.

Young women's attachment style and interpersonal engagement with female TV stars

The present study builds on an emerging body of research that finds adult attachment style predictive of interpersonal engagement with fictional media personas in ways that are congruent to patterns that emerge in real life relationships. Results of a questionnaire study indicate that a preoccupied attachment style among college women is associated with increased idealization of a favorite female character's behavior and physical appearance. Additionally, the desire to look like a favorite female character was greatest for women selecting thin characters, while perceived similarity to a character's appearance was greatest for those selecting average weight characters. The psychological motivation behind such media involvement and its potential impact on the emotional well being of anxiously attached young women are discussed.

The relationship between women's attachment style and perinatal mood disturbance: implications for screening and treatment.

To investigate women's attachment style in relation to risk for pregnancy-specific distress and perinatal depression. During the 2nd trimester, 186 women were evaluated for Axis I psychiatric disorders. In the 3rd trimester they self-reported: attachment style, pregnancy experience, current life stress, and symptoms of depression and anxiety. At 4 months post partum, a sub-sample of them (n = 56) repeated the self-report questionnaires. Wariness of attachments (high on fear dimension) was associated with greater 'hassles' compared to 'uplifts' in the assessment of pregnancy (r = 0.31, p <or= 0.001) while attachment security was negatively related to this ratio (r = -0.31, p <or= 0.001). Healthy women, versus women with a psychiatric diagnosis, scored higher on security (t = (150) -3.47, p <or= 0.001) and lower on attachment fear (t = (150) -2.32, p <or= 0.05). Using multiple regression models, there was a significant main effect of fearful attachment style on prenatal depressive symptoms (beta = 1.7, p <or= 0.05), and of fearful and secure attachment styles for postpartum depression (beta = -2.88, p <or= 0.05, beta = -3.78, p <or= 0.05, respectively), even in the context of other known risk factors (in the two models, F(8, 106) = 29.33, p <or= 0.0001, F(3, 33) = 10.85, p <or= 0.0001, respectively). A hierarchical regression showed that attachment security uniquely contributed to the risk for postpartum depression, beyond depression during pregnancy (R2 change from 0.25 to 0.35). An approach to perinatal psychiatric disorders that includes psychological factors such as attachment could improve screening, and provide pregnant women with specifically-tailored psychosocial interventions focused on modifying attachment schemas.

Attachment styles in adult intimate relationships: comparing women with bulimia nervosa symptoms, women with depression and women with no clinical symptoms

Objective Previous studies examining attachment styles in women with eating problems have investigated parental or peer relationships; this study investigated attachment styles in partner relationships. Women with clinical levels of bulimic symptoms (N = 55), subclinical bulimic symptoms (N = 42), depression but no eating problems (N = 44) and no eating or depressed problems (N = 80) from largely a community sample participated. Method Participants who responded to advertisements completed self-report questionnaires. Results Women with eating disorders and depression reported insecure attachment to partners and negative feelings towards their partner. Women in the control group reported secure attachment and positive feelings towards their partner. Discussion Insecure attachment and poor-quality relationships are problematic for women with clinical disturbances. Further exploration of treatment and development of models of aetiology and maintenance of these disorders should consider functioning in relationships. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Women's Use of Aggression Toward Their Former Spouses During Marital Separation

The purpose of this study was to assess predictors of women's use of verbal and physical aggression during marital separation among a sample of 147 divorced mothers. The predictor variables examined were women's self-esteem, mastery, attachment style, gender-role identity, and husband's verbal and physical aggression during separation. Hierarchical multiple regressions revealed that women's psychological characteristics and men's use of aggression toward their wives during separation were predictive of women's use of verbal aggression toward their husbands during marital separation. In addition, women's psychological characteristics and use of verbal aggression toward their husbands during separation and men's use of aggression toward their wives during separation predicted women's use of physical aggression toward their husbands during separation.

Early separation anxiety and adult attachment style in women with eating disorders

To ascertain whether women with eating disorders have a higher frequency of separation anxiety symptoms in childhood, and a higher prevalence of insecure styles of adult attachment, compared with healthy women. The Separation Anxiety Symptom Inventory (SASI) and the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) were administered to 78 women with eating disorders and 64 healthy women. Compared with control women, women with eating disorders reported more severe symptoms of separation anxiety during childhood, and scored higher on the ASQ scales, reflecting insecure styles of adult attachment. Early separation anxiety and insecure attachment were not correlated with age of onset or illness duration. The diagnostic subgroup was not associated with a specific style of insecure attachment: compared with control women, both anorexic and bulimic women scored higher on the ASQ scales reflecting anxious attachment, but not on the scales reflecting avoidant attachment. The results confirm the link between eating disorders and insecure attachment that has been found in previous studies, and extend it to childhood symptoms of separation anxiety.