Remembering the past and imagining the future: attachment effects on production of episodic details in close relationships

Attachment theories and studies have shown that Internal Working Models (IWMs) can impact autobiographical memory and future-oriented information processing relevant to close relationships. According to the constructive episodic simulation hypothesis (CESH), both remembering the past and imagining the future rely on episodic memory. We hypothesised that one way IWMs may bridge past experiences and future adaptations is via episodic memory. The present study investigated the association between attachment and episodic specificity in attachment-relevant and attachment-irrelevant memory and imagination among young and older adults. We measured the attachment style of 37 young adults and 40 older adults, and then asked them to remember or imagine attachment-relevant and attachment-irrelevant events. Participants’ narratives were coded for internal details (i.e., episodic) and external details (e.g., semantic, repetitions). The results showed that across age group, secure individuals generated more internal details and fewer external details in attachment-relevant tasks compared to attachment-irrelevant tasks; these differences were not observed in insecure individuals. These findings support the CESH and provide a new perspective to understand the function of IWMs.     

安全依恋启动效应的内在机制：非安全依恋风格调节下情绪与认知的协同作用

安全依恋启动具有一系列积极心理效应,且表现出启动效应普遍性与特异性的共存。两种属性的区别在于个体非安全依恋风格是否参与调节,这一调节与个体的依恋策略使用和概念联结程度紧密相关。当前,对于安全依恋启动内在机制的探讨集中在情绪缓冲与认知调控过程,本文回顾现有关于安全依恋启动的主要结论与解释,整合安全依恋启动的神经基础,并纳入依恋风格的调节因素,提出一个安全依恋启动的情绪/认知协同作用模型。最后围绕需要深入探讨的关键问题进行了展望。     

Dyadic synchrony in parent–child interactions: A link with maternal representations of attachment relationships

The study examined the relation between maternal representations of attachment relationships from childhood and current parent–child interactions with their own preschool aged children. Thirty-six mother–child dyads were recruited from a community sample. The Adult Attachment Interview was converted into a questionnaire (AAIQ) and used to classify mothers as either “secure” or “insecure.” The mother–child dyads then engaged in a 20-min, videotaped play interaction task. The quality of maternal representations of attachment relationships was related to the degree of dyadic synchrony, as well as maternal affect and style of relating. Secure mothers and their children engaged in a more fluid, synchronous process of give-and-take than insecure mothers and their children. In addition, secure mothers expressed more warmth and affection, and their style of relating was less intrusive and more encouraging of child autonomy than insecure mothers. Children of secure mothers sought closer contact and were more compliant than children of insecure mothers. These interaction patterns were uniquely related to maternal representations of attachment, independent of maternal age, education and SES. There were no differences in these patterns of relating between mothers who had experienced loving relationships in childhood (continuous secure) and mothers who had come to terms with unloving and painful childhood relationships (earned secure). Therefore, rather than the quality of childhood histories, it was the manner in which these early experiences were mentally organized and integrated in adulthood that was significantly related to current parent–child interaction patterns. Finally, these differences in parent–child interaction patterns that were apparent on the observational measure were in contrast to information obtained from a maternal self-report measure. © 1997 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health     

Representations of Early Attachment Experiences and Personality in Adulthood

The present study aimed to explore the association between the representation of early attachment experiences and personality in a representative and non-clinical German adult sample. Adult attachment was assessed by means of the Adult Attachment Interview. One hundred and sixty-seven German adults completed the NEO-FFI and the TPQ. Three important findings emerged: (1) Adults with insecure attachment representation (dismissing versus preoccupied) differ from each other in Neuroticism and Harm Avoidance, (2) attachment security is independent of personality and (3) Adults with an unresolved attachment trauma do not differ from those without with respect to personality. Our results underline the interrelation between attachment experiences, the regulation of negative emotions and self-perceived personality traits in adulthood. Moreover, our findings support theoretical assumptions of attachment theory proposing that attachment security emerges within social relationships. We suggest that unresolved attachment, at least in non-clinical samples, occurs through attachment-related traumatic experiences rather than specific personality dispositions and invite researchers to further explore biological and environmental risk factors leading to an unresolved state-of-mind.     

Secure attachment and material reward both attenuate romantic jealousy

Research has shown that social support and materialism can both serve as coping mechanisms, reducing individuals’ experiences of physical and social pain (Zhou and Gao in Psychol Inq 19(3–4):127–144, 2008). We extend this paradigm by testing the buffering effects of secure attachment and material reward on a specific form of social psychological pain: romantic jealousy. Two studies examined the effects of these variables after an imagined relational threat. Participants were primed with (a) secure attachment, (b) material reward, or (c) neutral control, and then responded to a hypothetical scenario involving their romantic partners behaving flirtatiously with a rival. Results from both studies showed that the secure attachment and material reward primes both attenuated jealous responses to the provoking stimuli, relative to the neutral control prime. Neither trait attachment styles nor chronic jealousy moderated the priming effects in Study 1, but attachment styles did slightly moderate the priming effects in Study 2.     

不安全依恋者注意偏向的形成机制及神经基础

不安全依恋者的注意偏向是指依恋焦虑和回避个体对依恋信息产生或趋近或回避的注意偏好, 这一注意偏好使得个体形成了处理与依恋对象关系的特殊认知机制：依恋回避个体偏好采用防御性机制, 倾向于回避对依恋信息的注意; 依恋焦虑个体偏好采用夸大性机制, 倾向于夸大威胁性信息, 因而会积极寻求与依恋对象的亲近。不安全依恋者注意偏向的差异主要体现在情绪信息、痛觉感受和工作记忆三个方面; 加工阶段特征主要涉及P1、N1波等代表的注意自动加工和LPP波代表的注意控制加工; 脑网络上主要包括两个子网络, 即负责情绪评估的边缘系统和负责情绪调节的以前额叶为代表的神经网络。未来研究中更应该关注刺激物的生态效度, 检验依恋系统是否激活, 不安全依恋者注意偏向的自动加工和控制加工阶段的关系, 不安全依恋者注意偏向产生的分子遗传机制以及注意偏向的跨文化研究。     

依恋的神经生理机制

在动物社会依恋的神经生物学研究基础上,研究者对人类依恋的神经生理机制进行了初步探讨,一致的结论是无论婴儿还是成人,不安全依恋个体的心率、皮质醇水平高于安全依恋的个体。而在依恋系统激活时婴儿和成人的脑电活动和大脑的功能定位研究却发现了不一致：较之安全依恋婴儿,不安全依恋婴儿的左侧前额大脑区域显示了较少的活动;成人依恋类型的脑机制研究并无定论。所有这些研究多为相关研究,今后有待于在神经生物水平上对依恋的基本理论问题如内部工作模式的意识和无意识性、母婴依恋与成人依恋的关系（特别是一般依恋表征和特殊依恋表征）以及母婴依恋对婴幼儿大脑发育的影响等问题展开深入研究     

非安全依恋可塑性的神经机制

非安全依恋可塑性是借助认知启动技术(例如安全依恋启动)使非安全依恋个体长期处于敏感和支持性的环境中, 从而唤醒个体积极的依恋经历, 使其对依恋关系形成新的认知图式, 最终实现非安全依恋个体内部工作模型的重构。本项目针对非安全依恋个体的认知加工缺陷, 采用安全依恋启动的方法探索非安全依恋可塑性的发生机制及相应的神经生理基础。项目拟从单次安全依恋启动对非安全依恋个体认知加工缺陷的改善效应、多任务条件下对重复安全启动效应的检验以及重复安全依恋启动效应的追踪研究三方面开展非安全依恋可塑性研究; 研究手段采用行为-生理-脑成像的技术, 从安全依恋启动的性质、方式和时间三个维度上系统地探究非安全依恋可塑性的发生机制与神经基础。非安全依恋可塑性研究为安全依恋研究提供了新视角, 研究提出的依恋图式重构理论是对安全基地图式理论的印证与发展, 对重复安全启动效应的检验及追踪研究试图为非安全依恋可塑性研究构建一套科学有效的评估标准。研究成果对于非安全依恋人群的干预训练、提升依恋安全感、维护心理健康具有重要价值。     

依恋安全对自传记忆提取现象学特征的影响

个体在回忆自传记忆时的主观体验特征称为自传记忆的现象学特征,而这种个体精神现象学特征的早期推动是个体依恋特征。研究采用依恋故事阅读启动范式,探讨依恋安全对自传记忆现象学特征提取的影响。研究结果显示,安全依恋启动组自传记忆的可得性、具体性、清晰性、生动性和关系自我构念显著高于不安全依恋启动组,且关系自我构念在依恋安全与自传记忆现象学特征之间起中介作用。研究从新的角度表明,依恋真实地生活在复杂的人际关系中,建构着个体关系自我构念,并真切影响着自传记忆现象学特征,积蓄着个体精神现象学特征的形成。     

从母亲的敏感性到学步儿的依恋安全性：内部工作模式的桥梁作用

采用视觉习惯化实验程序、陌生情境技术及母亲行为Q分类方法对41名14个月的学步儿及其母亲进行了学步儿内部工作模式、学步儿在陌生情境中的依恋类型以及母亲在母婴互动中的敏感性的评估。结果发现：(1)不安全型的学步儿预期看护者对他们痛苦的信号是无回应的。(2)以自身为中心的母亲的学步儿预期看护者是无回应的。(3)潜类别分析的结果发现母亲敏感性影响学步儿依恋行为的2种关系模式：类别1, 以孩子为中心的母亲的学步儿更容易形成看护者是有回应的预期, 持这种预期的学步儿在陌生情境程序中表现出安全依恋行为; 类别2, 以自身为中心的母亲养育出的学步儿更容易对看护者形成无回应的预期, 并在陌生情境中表现出不安全依恋行为。研究表明：内部工作模式在母亲的敏感性和学步儿的依恋安全性之间起着重要的内部机制作用—— 母亲的敏感性行为的累积促进了学步儿内部工作模式关于母亲的预期, 这种预期又进一步引导着学步儿的依恋行为。     

Social flexibility and anxious attachment

Social flexibility was predicted to correlate with anxious/ambivalent attachment among individuals reminded of attachment-related uncertainties. In the experiment reported here, subjects wrote about positive versus negative relationship events and then responded to a series of interpersonal conflict situations. Correlations between their responses and previously obtained attachment style scores provide supportive evidence for the predictions. The results suggest that anxious/ambivalent attachment may limit social flexibility by interfering with information processing in complex social situations. Results are discussed in terms of models of test anxiety.     

Childhood Maltreatment and its Effect on Parenting among High-Risk Parents

Research evidence indicates that a childhood history of maltreatment affects parental behaviors in adulthood. The aim of the study was to investigate the predictors for parental behaviors among individuals who reported a history of maltreatment. The current study investigated whether attachment styles, emotional regulation and cognitive appraisals of parenting predicted parental behaviors (positive vs. negative). The study also investigated the differential effects of abuse experiences in childhood (physical, sexual, emotional, and neglect) on parental behaviors. The participants were 213 high-risk Jewish and Arab parents of children aged six and under. Participants completed five self-report questionnaires assessing parental behaviors, childhood experiences of abuse and neglect, attachment styles, emotional regulation, and cognitive appraisal of parenthood. The regression analyses revealed that personal attributes such as ethnicity, childhood experience of emotional abuse/neglect, emotional regulation, and appraisal of parenting, predict negative parental behavior. Anxious attachment and childhood emotional abuse and neglect moderated the impact of parenthood appraisal on parenting behaviors. Although physical and sexual abuse had the highest impact on insecure attachment, emotional abuse/neglect had higher predictive power for non-positive parenting. Clinical interventions for improving the capacity for emotional regulation and parent-child relational skills are suggested.     

Emotional reactions and regulatory responses to negative and positive events: Associations with attachment and gender

In two studies, we examined inter-individual variability in responses to both negative and positive events. In the first study, participants (119 college students) reported on negative and positive events from their own lives. The second was an experiment in which participants (133 college students) were given either negative or positive feedback about their personality. With negative events, more insecure individuals, especially anxiously attached, evidenced more intense negative emotional reactions and greater processing of (i.e., ruminating on) negative experiences. With positive events, securely attached individuals and less anxiously attached engaged in greater processing of positive experiences (maximized), whereas more insecure individuals tended to minimize positive experiences. Gender differences for emotion regulation were moderated by either attachment or event type. Findings for negative events generally coincide with prior research, and those for positive events provide new evidence that attachment style could affect how people react to positive events and emotions.     

What can you do for me?: Attachment style and motives underlying esteem for partners

Two event-contingent diary studies investigated whether people of different attachment styles value partners for different reasons (e.g., self-esteem regulation, closeness). In Study 1, preoccupied individuals more positively regarded partners when they provided help with self-regulatory functions, and they did so to a greater extent than either secure or dismissing-avoidant individuals. In Study 2, preoccupied and fearful-avoidant individuals were more likely to want to gain approval from partners. Also, when preoccupied individuals obtained partner approval, they valued their partner more, and they did so to a greater extent than secure individuals. Continuous attachment measures produced weaker findings, but people higher in anxious-ambivalence generally showed patterns similar to those found for preoccupied individuals. Findings suggest that the process by which people come to positively view their partners may vary depending on their attachment-related goals.     

Family-of-origin maltreatment, posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, social information processing deficits, and relationship abuse perpetration

In this study, the authors examined the interrelations among family-of-origin maltreatment variables, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, social information processing deficits, and male-to-female psychological and physical intimate relationship abuse perpetration in adulthood among a community sample of 164 men and their partners. In bivariate analyses, higher family-of-origin childhood parental rejection was associated with the perpetration of psychological and physical abuse in adulthood, and childhood exposure to interparental violence was also associated with adult psychological abuse perpetration. Structural equation modeling analyses indicated that when childhood variables and other study variables were considered together, only childhood parental rejection was associated with the abuse perpetration outcomes, and these effects were indirect through PTSD symptoms and social information processing deficits. Results indicate a need for further investigation into the mechanisms accounting for the impact of early maltreatment on the development of abusive intimate relationship behavior.     

Attachment and autobiographical memory retrieval: Event-related potential evidence from strategic information processing

This article presents two studies using event-related potentials combined with an autobiographical memory (AM) retrieval task and a lexical judge task to explore differences in AM retrieval among differently attached individuals and to further explore whether the source of these differences is the schematic information processing mode or strategic information processing mode. The effectiveness of the information processing mode is also studied. The results revealed that differences in the AM extraction of different attachment styles were due to the strategic information processing mode, while no differences were found in the schematic information processing used by individuals with different attachment styles. Further, the strategic information processing used by the securely attached group was more flexible and efficient than that used by the insecurely attached group; moreover, the strategic information processing mode used by the avoidantly attached group was more stable and consistent than that used by the anxiously attached group.     

Terror management and adults' attachment to their parents: the safe haven remains

Six studies examined the role of young adults' parental attachment in terror management. Studies 1-3 revealed that activating thoughts of one's parent in response to mortality salience (MS) reduced death-thought accessibility and worldview defense and increased feelings of self-worth. Studies 4-5 demonstrated that MS led to greater ease of recalling positive maternal interactions and greater difficulty recalling negative interactions, and increased attraction to a stranger who was described as being similar to one's parent. If reliance on parents for terror management purposes reflects the operation of attachment mechanisms, then such effects should vary on the basis of an individual's attachment style. Study 6 demonstrated that, after MS, insecure individuals were more likely to rely on relationships with their parents, whereas secure individuals were more likely to rely on relationships with romantic partners.     

Relationship experiences and change in attachment characteristics of young adults: The role of relationship breakups and conflict avoidance

This study examined whether close relationship experiences predict change in individuals’attachment Characteristics. Partners from 301 dating couples each rated their attachment characteristics and their conflict avoidance. Five months later 184 women and 138 men reported whether their relationships were intact or broken‐up, and they rated their attachment characteristics again. Women became less secure after a breakup and more secure after remaining together. There was a similar result for men who initially had insecure attachment characteristics. Additionally, women low in conflict avoidance became more secure over time, and those high in conflict avoidance became less secure. For men whose relationships remained intact, conflict avoidance was not related to change in attachment characteristics. For men whose relationships ended, however, initial conflict avoidance predicted increased attachment security. These results extend previous research on the stability of attachment characteristics by exploring predictors of change.