Attachment‐style differences in the appraisal of the attachment figure

The present study investigated the distinctive effects of global and specific attachment styles on the processing of attachment‐figure cues, focusing specifically on the role of cognitive inhibition. We manipulated the temporal accessibility of specific attachment styles and measured automatic inhibitory processes using a negative affective priming (NAP) task presenting positive and negative words. We also measured one's explicit attitude towards the attachment figure. Results showed that specific, but not global, attachment styles influenced the processing of attachment‐figure cues. We also found that participants primed with a secure attachment style showed a better inhibition of negative traits than those primed with an insecure style. At the explicit level, the anxious attachment types showed a more negative evaluation of their attachment figure than primed secures. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Repeated priming of attachment security influences later views of self and relationships

Research shows that priming attachment security results in positive relationship expectations and affect (Rowe & Carnelley, 2003). We examined whether repetitive priming of attachment security (e.g., experimentally activating cognitive representations of attachment security) would have more lasting effects on relationship‐ and self‐views. Participants provided baseline measures at Time 1. On 3 occasions (across 3 days), we primed participants with attachment security or a neutral prime (Times 2–4). Two days later (Time 5), participants completed trait‐level measures not preceded by a prime. As expected, those repeatedly primed with attachment security reported more positive relationship expectations, more positive self‐views, and less attachment anxiety at Time 5 than at Time 1; those primed with neutral primes showed no change with time. These priming effects last longer than those typically found.     

Attachment theory and reactions to others' needs:' evidence that activation of the sense of attachment security promotes empathic responses.

Five studies examined the effects of chronic and contextual activation of attachment security on reactions to others' needs. The sense of attachment security was contextually primed by asking participants to recollect personal memories, read a story, or look at a picture of supportive others or by subliminally exposing them to proximity-related words. This condition was compared against the priming of neutral themes, positive affect, or attachment-insecurity schemas. Then reports of empathy and personal distress or the accessibility of empathy and personal-distress memories were assessed. Attachment-security priming strengthened empathic reactions and inhibited personal distress. Self-reports of attachment anxiety and avoidance were inversely related to empathy, and attachment anxiety was positively related to personal distress. The discussion emphasizes the relevance of attachment theory for explaining reactions to others' needs.     

Attachment style impacts behavior and early oculomotor response to positive,but not negative,pictures

The present study investigated whether oculomotor behavior is influenced by attachment styles. The Relationship Scales Questionnaire was used to assess attachment styles of forty‐eight voluntary university students and to classify them into attachment groups (secure, preoccupied, fearful, and dismissing). Eye‐tracking was recorded while participants engaged in a 3‐seconds free visual exploration of stimuli presenting either a positive or a negative picture together with a neutral picture, all depicting social interactions. The task consisted in identifying whether the two pictures depicted the same emotion. Results showed that the processing of negative pictures was impermeable to attachment style, while the processing of positive pictures was significantly influenced by individual differences in insecure attachment. The groups highly avoidant regarding to attachment (dismissing and fearful) showed reduced accuracy, suggesting a higher threshold for recognizing positive emotions compared to the secure group. The groups with higher attachment anxiety (preoccupied and fearful) showed differences in automatic capture of attention, in particular an increased delay preceding the first fixation to a picture of positive emotional valence. Despite lenient statistical thresholds induced by the limited sample size of some groups (p < 0.05 uncorrected for multiple comparisons), the current findings suggest that the processing of positive emotions is affected by attachment styles. These results are discussed within a broader evolutionary framework.     

I need you closer to me: Effects of affiliation goals on perceptions of interpersonal distance

People's perceptions are often distorted in a way that aligns with their desires and goals. We argue that having a goal to affiliate changes the perception of interpersonal distance in a way that may help to fulfil this affiliation goal. As other people are goal‐relevant when having an affiliation goal, we expected that people with affiliation goals would estimate the distance between themselves and another person as smaller than people with no affiliation goals. In two studies, we manipulated affiliation goals by priming participants with affiliation or control words. Our main dependent variable was the estimated interpersonal distance between themselves and the experimenter. Results showed that participants primed with affiliation estimated the interpersonal distance as smaller compared with participants primed with control words. We did not obtain reliable differences between the affiliation and control conditions on other distance and height estimations. Our results suggest that having or not having affiliation goals influences people's perception of the distance between them and other people.     

Your love makes me feel more secure: Boosting attachment security decreases materialistic values

Enhanced interpersonal security has been shown to diminish the desire for money and possessions. In the present study, we focus on attachment security to examine the relationship between attachment security and materialism. By employing the experience in close relationships – short scale and material values scale, we observed a positive relationship between attachment insecurity and materialism in Study 1. In Study 2, we primed participants' feeling of attachment security to further explore the impact of attachment security on materialistic values. The results showed that participants in the security-priming group exhibited lower levels of state materialism (Study 2a) and a longer time to respond to materialism-related words (Studies 2b and 2c) than participants in the neutral condition. However, attachment styles did not moderate the attachment security-materialism relationship. Our findings reveal that regardless of attachment style, boosting attachment security can effectively decrease materialism.     

Cognitive reactivity and depressotypic information processing in children of depressed mothers.

Although high-risk research suggests that children of depressed mothers are at increased risk for psychological disorders, the mechanisms of this risk are not well understood. In the current study, the information processing of children of depressed mothers was compared with that of children whose mothers were not depressed. Half of each group received a priming induction designed to activate cognitive schemas prior to assessment. All children then completed a self-referent processing task that examined the recall of negative and positive information. Results indicate that when primed, at-risk children showed a less positive self-concept and more negative information processing than did the children in the other groups. These data may offer potential clues into the mechanisms of cognitive vulnerability in at-risk children.     

Attachment style and the regulation of negative affect: exploring individual differences in mood congruency effects on memory and judgment

Three studies examined the role that attachment style plays in moderating the effects of induced negative affect on memory and judgment. Israeli undergraduates completed an attachment style scale and were exposed to a negative or neutral affect induction. In Study 1, incidental recall of negative and positive information was assessed; in Study 2, the attribution of negative and positive relational events was studied; and in Study 3, findings of Study 1 were replicated using a different affect induction procedure. Whereas securely attached persons reacted to induced negative affect with an affect-incongruent pattern of cognitions (better recall of positive information, more unstable/specific attribution of negative event), anxiously attached persons reacted with an affect-congruent pattern (worse recall of positive information, more stable/global attribution of negative event). Persons scoring high on attachment avoidance showed no significant cognitive effect of negative affect. The discussion emphasizes the role that attachment strategies play in the affect-cognition link.     

阈上阈下启动刺激在不同锻炼人群中引发自动评价的特点

双加工理论认为锻炼行为形成中自动加工（系统1）和熟虑加工（系统2）是两个相互作用但又截然不同的信息处理系统,其中自动评价通过触发系统1的自动加工过程激活运动记忆自发的心理联想,并对运动进行情感评价,从而影响锻炼行为。本研究的目的是检测锻炼相关刺激在不同锻炼人群中引发的自动评价特点。采用评价启动任务范式,实验1和实验2分别给予阈上和阈下锻炼词或非锻炼词作为启动刺激,之后要求被试对积极或者消极目标词进行按键反应。研究结果显示无论阈上还是阈下呈现锻炼启动词,均表现为锻炼组对积极目标词反应速度更快。结果表明：锻炼人群对于锻炼词具有积极自动评价。     

The effect of cultural orientation and leadership style on self‐ versus other‐oriented organizational citizenship behaviour in Turkey and the Netherlands

This paper investigated the effects of a paternalistic and empowering leadership style on organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB) in an experimental design using 100 Turkish and 100 Dutch students who held part‐time jobs. Confirming our expectations, a paternalistic leadership style had a more positive effect on job dedication and organizational support in Turkey than in the Netherlands. Contradicting our expectations, an empowering leadership style did not have a more positive effect on any of the OCB dimensions in the Netherlands than it did in Turkey. However, in the Netherlands an empowering leadership style had a stronger effect on interpersonal facilitation, job dedication, and organizational support than a paternalistic leadership style. Paternalistic and empowering leadership styles both had positive effects on OCB dimensions in Turkey. As expected, collectivism moderated the relationship between paternalistic leadership style and other oriented OCB (i.e., interpersonal facilitation). Specifically, people who had more collectivistic tendencies were more positively influenced by a paternalistic leader than people who had low collectivistic tendencies in both countries. However, individualism did not have any moderating effects on the relationship between empowering leadership style and self‐oriented OCB (i.e., job dedication). Our findings are relevant for understanding the effects of leadership styles and cultural orientations on self‐ versus other‐oriented OCB in Turkey and the Netherlands.     

Assimilation for affiliation and contrast for control: complementary self-construals

People have knowledge about relationships (i.e., relational schemas) that is based on their experiences. Because most people have experience with complementary behavior (interaction partners behaving similarly in terms of affiliation but oppositely in terms of control), they expect complementary behavior in their relationships. Like other beliefs about relationships, expectations of complementarity affect self-construal. The authors provide evidence for complementary self-construal; people assimilate to relevant relationship partners on the affiliation dimension and contrast on the control dimension. Consistent with the proposed role of relationship knowledge in these effects, complementary self-construal was moderated by the familiarity of the target, whether people focused on their relationship with or the appearance of the target, and whether the context was relevant for the interpersonal dimension.     

The effect of subliminal priming on sleep duration

Two experiments primed college students with either sleep‐related or neutral words and then assessed sleep during a 25 minute nap period. Both experiments showed that participants primed with sleep‐related words reported having slept longer than did those primed with neutral words. Furthermore, both experiments showed that sleep‐primed participants exhibited lower heart rate. Experiment 2 also revealed that the effect of the priming manipulation was especially strong among participants who had trouble sleeping. This suggests that priming might be a cost‐effective treatment for inducing sleep among people with sleep problems.     

Attachment theory and emotions in close relationships: Exploring the attachment‐related dynamics of emotional reactions to relational events

Attachment theory is a powerful framework for understanding affect regulation. In this article, we examine the role played by attachment orientation in shaping emotional reactions to interpersonal transactions within close relationships. Using our recent integrative model of attachment‐system activation and dynamics as a guide ( M. Mikulincer & P. R. Shaver, 2003 ), we review relevant evidence, present new findings, and propose hypotheses concerning how people with different attachment styles are likely to react emotionally to relational events. Specifically, we focus on attachment‐related variations in the emotional states elicited by a relationship partner's positive and negative behaviors and by signals of a partner's (relationship relevant or relationship irrelevant) distress or pleasure. In so doing, we organize existing knowledge and point the way to future research on attachment‐related emotions in close relationships.     

Positive Affect and Flexibility: Overcoming the Precedence of Global over Local Processing of Visual Information

Previous findings on the relationship between positive mood and global processing are often based on visual matching tasks that involve a choice between global and local strategies. Preferences for global processing in positive mood, however, do not imply a reduced ability to process locally. The present experiment tested the assumption that positive affect increases flexibility in cognitive processing as indicated by the ability to overcome global precedence, and to respond rapidly to non-dominant (local) features when the task necessitates it. Consistent with expectations, participants responded significantly faster to local targets after positive compared to neutral and negative prime words. The typical precedence of global over local processing observed after neutral and negative prime words was reversed after positive prime words. Findings support the assumption that positive affect increases cognitive flexibility. Furthermore, findings suggest that mood-related preferences in global versus local processing cannot be generalized to processing ability.     

Trust in the medical profession and patient attachment style

Attachment style is a person’s approach to interpersonal relationships, which develops from early experiences with primary caregivers and can remain stable into adulthood. Depending on a person’s attachment style, the amount of trust one has in others can vary when forming relationships, and trust is important in formation of the patient–physician relationship. The purpose of this study was to see if there is an association between attachment style and trust in physicians in general. Participants were recruited from an emergency department (ED) and an online university participant pool, and completed short questionnaires assessing attachment style and trust in the medical profession. Results revealed that individuals with a fearful attachment style reported significantly lower levels of trust in the medical profession than those with a secure attachment style. ED participants also reported higher levels of trust in the medical profession in comparison to student participants. This study provides a better understanding of trust in the medical profession, and insight into future care for patients who have low trust.     

大学生人际自立特质与抑郁的关系：人际应对的中介作用

人际自立与抑郁关系的系列研究显示,人际自立特质可以抵御抑郁。本次研究进一步假设人际自立特质可以通过人际应对的中介作用来抵御作为人际应激反应的抑郁。为了检验这一假设,采用青少年学生人际自立量表、流调用抑郁自评量表和大学生人际关系压力应对方式问卷对重庆、甘肃三所大学362名有效被试进行了调查,相关和结构方程模型分析的结果显示,在控制了性别、年龄、专业后：（1）人际自立的5个特质与积极应对显著正相关,与消极应对和抑郁显著负相关;（2）人际独立、人际主动和人际责任能直接负向预测抑郁;（3）消极应对在人际开放和人际责任与抑郁之间起到中介作用。研究结果部分支持了研究假设,提示人际自立特质可以通过人际应对的中介作用来影响抑郁。     

Cross-language positive priming disappears, negative priming does not: Evidence for two sources of selective inhibition

The authors used a unilingual and bilingual primed lexical decision task to investigate priming effects produced by attended and ignored words. In the unilingual experiment, accelerated lexical decisions to probe target words resulted when the word matched the preceding target word, whereas slowed lexical decisions to probe target words resulted when the word matched the preceding ignored nontarget word. In the bilingual (English-Spanish) experiment, between-language, rather than within-language, priming manipulations were used. Although the ignored repetition negative priming effect replicated across languages, cross-language attended repetition positive priming did not. This dissociation of priming effects in the inter- versus intralanguage priming conditions contradicts episodic retrieval accounts of negative priming that deny the existence of selective inhibitory processes. On the other hand, these results support an extension of inhibition-based accounts of negative priming, because they indicate that inhibition can operate at two levels of abstraction--local word and global language--simultaneously.     

网络成瘾者不同情绪状态下的认知加工特征

取在校大学生454人,通过《青少年病理性互联网使用量表》（Adolescent Pathological Internet Use Scale, APIUS),筛查出网络成瘾者31名为实验组,随机抽取样本中其他非成瘾大学生31人为对照组。使用词首－词尾对应三重意义组合图片60个为实验材料,用人物图片为情绪启动刺激,研究被试在不同情绪状态下的认知选择,记录被试选择词组性质和反应时间。研究发现,所有被试对积极词语的选择最多,对消极词语的选择最少,表现出“趋乐避苦”的认知选择倾向;成瘾组被试对积极词语的选择比对照组少,但是对消极词语选择比对照组多。悲伤启动情况下,成瘾组被试对积极词语的选择比对照组少,但是对消极词语的选择则比对照组多。成瘾组被试对积极信息的选择速度比对照组慢,但是对中性信息和消极信息的选择速度则比对照组快。愉快情绪启动下,成瘾组被试的反应时间比对照组短,在悲伤情绪启动下,成瘾组被试的反应时间比对照组长。悲伤情绪启动下,成瘾组被试对积极词语的反应时间比对照组慢,但是对消极词语的反应时间比对照组快。这些研究结果对网络成瘾的治疗有重要的参考价值。