Maternal romantic attachment,and antenatal and postnatal mother–infant attachment in a sample of Polish women

In this exploratory study, we evaluated the relationship between a woman's self-reported romantic attachment style (as measured with The Attachment Styles Questionnaire), her experience of pregnancy, antenatal (The Maternal–Fetal Attachment Scale) and postnatal (Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire) attachment with her baby, and depressive symptomatology (The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale). In the first stage of the study 162 pregnant females participated; of these, 64 were followed up in the second stage. The maternal romantic attachment style predicted attachment with the baby in the antenatal, but not in the postpartum period. The anxious-ambivalent romantic attachment style predicted more interaction with and attributing more characteristics to the foetus, secure attachment style was positively correlated with role taking, and avoidant—with attributing more characteristics to the foetus. In the postpartum period, the correlation between antenatal and postnatal attachment was only moderate; role taking during pregnancy correlated with anxiety about care for an infant. However, our study shows the association of the profile of anxious-ambivalent romantic attachment with postpartum depression, which heightens the risk of postnatal mother–infant bonding impairments.     

Do you remember?: Recollections of adult attachment patterns

To determine if memory biases influence recall of attachment patterns, we examined retrospective reports of adult attachment patterns in a sample of young established couples. At time 1, participants reported their attachment patterns on a self-report attachment measure (RQ). Eight months later, participants completed the RQ to assess their current attachment patterns, as well as their memory of their attachment patterns 8 months earlier. Seventy-eight percent of participants reported that their past attachment category was consistent with their current category, and 58% of participants accurately recalled their predominant time 1 attachment category. Parallel results were obtained with continuous attachment ratings We also found strong reconstructive biases: Participants’memories of their past attachment patterns were biased by their current patterns. Secure and insecure individuals did not differ in their perceptions of stability, their accuracy of recall, or the degree to which they demonstrated a consistency bias. Finally, with few exceptions, memories for time 1 attachment ratings were not biased by current relationship satisfaction, current partner attachment ratings, or reported life events. The importance of studying reconstructive biases in the field of adult attachment is discussed.     

How do romantic relationship satisfaction,gender stereotypes,and gender relate to future time orientation in romantic relationships?

The present study is an investigation into how romantic relationship satisfaction and attitudes toward gender stereotypes about romantic relationship and gender are related to future time orientation in romantic relationships (FTORR). Four hundred and thirteen (208 men and 205 women) university students taking elective psychology courses at Middle East Technical University were given a scale including items about FTORR, romantic relationship satisfaction, and attitudes toward gender stereotypes about romantic relationships. All the participants were then involved in a heterosexual romantic relationship. Multiple regression results showed that for the women, attitudes toward men's assertiveness and men's dominance in relationships were more important predictors of FTORR than relationship satisfaction. For the men, attitudes toward men's assertiveness and romantic relationship satisfaction were important predictors of FTORR, but attitude toward men's dominance was not a predictor of FTORR. Women were more future oriented in their ongoing romantic relationships than were men. Finally, participants who were highly satisfied with their relationships scored higher on FTORR than those who were less satisfied.     

Why am I unsatisfied? Adult attachment style, gendered irrational relationship beliefs, and young adult romantic relationship satisfaction

Are individual differences in adult attachment styles (secure, anxious-ambivalent, or avoidant) associated with differential adherence to relationship-specific irrational beliefs? Does endorsement of irrational relationship beliefs relate to actual relationship dissatisfaction? These questions were explored with a sample of 118 male and female college students. Results indicated that insecure individuals (anxious-ambivalent or avoidant) endorsed significantly more relationship-specific irrational beliefs than those with a secure adult attachment style. Gendered patterns of endorsement of specific irrational beliefs cluster were also observed. Further, both an insecure adult attachment style and stronger adherence to relationship-specific irrational beliefs were related to diminished relationship satisfaction.     

Who shapes the self of independents and interdependents? Explicit and implicit measures of the self's relatedness to family,friends and partner

We suggest that social relationships shape the self in different ways, depending on whether persons define themselves as independent or interdependent. While the self of independents is most strongly associated with mental representations of others to whom they are related because of their own deliberate action (e.g. friends), the self of interdependents is most strongly connected with representations of others with whom they share allocated group memberships (e.g. family members). We took both explicit (Study 1) and implicit measures (Studies 2, 3 and 4) on how strongly independent and interdependent selves are associated with self‐chosen versus allocated close others. In Studies 3 and 4, we additionally primed the independent or interdependent self. Both explicit and implicit measures indicated that mental representations of family members were more strongly associated with the interdependent self than with the independent self, while romantic partners and friends were connected with both the independent and interdependent self. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How schoolchildren’s acceptance of self and others relate to their attitudes to victims of bullying

Previous research has indicated that harm to the mental health of children who are repeatedly victimised by their peers at school can be ameliorated through social or emotional support provided by other students. In this study we examined whether student provictim attitudes are related to more basic attitudes to self and attitudes to others. Measures of these attitudes were developed for use with children, and shown to be internally consistent and possess concurrent validity. Relations between these variables were then examined with a sample of Australian school children ( $N = 212$ ) aged between 9 and 14 years. Provictim attitudes correlated significantly ( $r = .55$ ) with acceptance of others, but not with acceptance of self ( $r = -.04$ ). Controlling for age and gender, multiple regression analyses confirmed these findings. Attitudes to victims were less positive for older students ( $r = -.22$ ). Gender differences, however, were not significant. These findings suggest that among schoolchildren self-acceptance is unrelated to positive attitudes towards victims, whereas acceptance of others has a moderately strong relation with provictim attitude. Implications for improving attitudes to victims among school children were examined.     

When and why do ideal partner preferences affect the process of initiating and maintaining romantic relationships?

Three studies explored how the traits that people ideally desire in a romantic partner, or ideal partner preferences, intersect with the process of romantic relationship initiation and maintenance. Two attraction experiments in the laboratory found that, when participants evaluated a potential romantic partner's written profile, they expressed more romantic interest in a partner whose traits were manipulated to match (vs. mismatch) their idiosyncratic ideals. However, after a live interaction with the partner, the match vs. mismatch manipulation was no longer associated with romantic interest. This pattern appeared to have emerged because participants reinterpreted the meaning of the traits as they applied to the partner, a context effect predicted by classic models of person perception (S. E. Asch, 1946). Finally, a longitudinal study of middle-aged adults demonstrated that participants evaluated a current romantic partner (but not a partner who was merely desired) more positively to the extent that the partner matched their overall pattern of ideals across several traits; the match in level of ideals (i.e., high vs. low ratings) was not relevant to participants' evaluations. In general, the match between ideals and a partner's traits may predict relational outcomes when participants are learning about a partner in the abstract and when they are actually in a relationship with the partner, but not when considering potential dating partners they have met in person.     

The contributions of child–mother attachment,maternal parenting stress,and military status to the prediction of child behavior problems

Studies show that children with a military parent are at heightened risk of the development of behavior problems. However, there is limited work examining how other factors experienced by military families may also influence behavior problems. In the current study, we recruited three types of Canadian families with a preschooler: families with a deployed military member, families with a nondeployed military member, and nonmilitary families. We examined whether the nonmilitary parent's (in all cases the mother) parenting stress and attachment relationship with the child are associated with behavior problems, and whether deployment status further contributes to the prediction. Child–mother dyads participated in an observed attachment assessment, and mothers reported on their stress levels and their child's behavior. Results showed that both child attachment insecurity and parenting stress were associated with elevated levels of internalizing problems; however, only parenting stress was associated with conduct problems. Military deployment predicted higher levels of internalizing and conduct problems beyond the contributions of attachment and stress. Furthermore, having a father in the military (whether deployed or not) also contributed to internalizing problems. These findings shed light on how the military lifestyle impacts early childhood mental health through the complex interplay between various parts of their environment.     

Do social comparisons in academic settings relate to gender and academic self-confidence?

This paper reports the development of an Academic Social Comparison Scale (ASCS) to measure students’ tendencies to socially compare themselves with other students in an educational setting. The 27-item ASCS was then measured in relation to academic self-confidence in a sample of University students, using the Individual Learning Profile (ILP) scale. The study found that making downward academic social comparisons was not very commonly reported and did not relate to academic confidence in any domain measured. Confidence in numeracy, speaking, and hard IT were, however, significantly lower in those students who tended to make more upward social comparisons. The results also showed that the less students reported that they socially compared in general, the more confident they were in reading, writing, and time management. All three subscales of the ASCS showed good reliability when tested 6–9 weeks later. The ASCS showed that female students tended to make more upward academic social comparisons and less downward academic comparisons than male students. In domains such as reading and writing people’s confidence was higher if they made fewer academic social comparisons (irrespective of direction), and gender was not an important factor. Results also showed that academic confidence was neither higher nor lower in students who reported making more downwards academic comparisons. This study demonstrates the negative impact on confidence of upward social comparisons, and introduces a social comparison questionnaire specifically tailored for measuring people’s tendencies to make social comparisons in the academic domain.     

Who drops-out? Do measures of risk to self and to others predict unplanned endings in primary care counselling?

Aims: Unplanned endings, where clients unilaterally end therapy, are of concern for psychological therapy services generally as they raise questions about the appropriateness of the treatment and it's delivery for some clients. Limited available data indicates that those who drop-out often have more severe symptoms at entry, and have poorer clinical outcomes. This raises further questions about risk to self and others for those clients who leave therapy prematurely and how these clients might be identified and kept engaged. Method: This paper uses a large dataset of CORE data collected routinely in a primary care counselling service between 2000 and 2003. Logistic regression was utilised to consider different measures of risk and other client characteristics recorded at assessment to predict drop-out from the service. Results: These indicate that younger age, greater psychological distress at assessment, an addiction problem and greater risk to others, are associated with an unplanned ending. However, no reliable logistic regression model could be produced. This may be partly due to data quality issues or important characteristics not being available in the data. Implications for practice: The paper concludes that counsellors should actively seek to minimise unplanned endings, as amongst them may be represented the more distressed and risky clients referred to primary care counselling.     

Ratings of self and parents by youth: are they affected by family status, gender, and birth order?

In the present study, 648 youths from across the state of Kansas voluntarily evaluated themselves and their parents using the Personal Attribute Inventory for Children. Self-concept was found to be significantly higher for those from intact families in comparison with those from divorced remarried families. Evaluations of mothers were significantly higher for those from intact and divorced nonremarried families as compared with those from divorced remarried families. The ratings of fathers by youths from intact families were significantly more favorable than the ratings by those from either divorced nonremarried or divorced remarried families. Interestingly, gender by family status two-way interaction effects were also found for self-concept and ratings of fathers. Possible explanations for these findings, and their implications, are discussed.     

Does degree of asymmetry relate to performance? A reply to Boles and Barth

In a recent critique Boles and Barth (2011) argue that their prior study investigating asymmetry/performance relationships (Boles, Barth, & Merrill, 2008) uncovered the “true” association (i.e., negative correlation) between lateralization of visual lexical processes and word recognition performance. They contend that our study reporting positive correlations of lexical asymmetry and reading performance (Chiarello et al., 2009) was flawed and hence inconclusive. In this response we address the two major objections raised by Boles and Barth (2011) regarding our selection of tasks and asymmetry measures. We conclude that the Boles and Barth principle of task purity is not relevant to the stated aims of our investigation, and that our linear regression method of measuring asymmetry is valid given the high level of accuracy for the tasks we reported. Because the aims of each investigation differed, we argue that it is unwise to attempt to fit each study into the framework favored by Boles and Barth (2011).     

Power and the suppression of unwanted thoughts: Does control over others decrease control over the self?

Suppressing unwanted thoughts increases the accessibility of these thoughts after suppression is released. Two studies test the hypothesis that the magnitude of post-suppressional rebound is moderated by power. Study 1 measured participants’ thoughts about a white bear under suppression and expression instructions, following Wegner, Schneider, Carter, and White (1987). Study 2 measured stereotype accessibility after a task that required participants to describe one day in the life of an African-American under suppression or no-suppression instructions. Consistently across the two studies, powerful participants showed stronger post-suppressional rebound relative to powerless participants. The consequences of these findings for decision making and stereotyping are discussed.     

The client: Therapist's partner or therapist's opponent? thoughts on the question of power and cooperation in therapy

The difference in process and outcome of two therapies conducted by the author with families having a psychotic adolescent is considered. Attention is paid to the fact that in one case the client was regarded theoretically as an opponent and in the other as a partner. It is concluded that the contention thatthe therapist must decide whether to be influential or cooperative arises from a logical confusion by failing to recognize that therapy cannot be anything other than cooperation.Originally published as part of a special issue on the power metaphor guestedited by Klaus G. Deissler inZeitschrift fur systemische Therapie (1986),4, 253–257. Translated by S. Awodey.     

An actor–partner interdependence model of employees’ and coworkers’ innovative behavior,psychological detachment,and strain reactions

In an extension of the existing paradigm on the benefits of innovative behavior for organizations, this study addresses the negative effects of innovative behavior. Guided by psychological detachment theory, we propose that both displaying innovative behavior and witnessing others’ innovative behavior make it difficult for workers to psychologically distance themselves from innovation matters, engendering strain reactions (e.g., sleep problems, hostility). Those with more proactive personalities may be more likely to experience these detachment difficulty problems after displaying or witnessing innovative behavior. To test these premises, we conducted two studies. In the pilot study (N = 104 employee–coworker dyads), we gathered both quantitative and qualitative data to show that innovative behavior predicts detachment difficulty above and beyond other job behaviors. In the main study, we collected data from 257 employee–coworker dyads over 5 weeks and analyzed them with an actor–partner interdependence model. The results are generally supportive, suggesting that further investigation of the unintended consequences of innovative behavior is warranted.