Physical, emotional, and behavioral reactions to breaking up: the roles of gender, age, emotional involvement, and attachment style

Associations between gender, age, emotional involvement, and attachment style and reactions to romantic relationship dissolution were studied in a survey of more than 5,000 Internet respondents. It was hypothesized that individual reactions to breakups would be congruent with characteristic attachment behaviors and affect-regulation strategies generally associated with attachment style. Attachment-related anxiety was associated with greater preoccupation with the lost partner, greater perseveration over the loss, more extreme physical and emotional distress, exaggerated attempts to reestablish the relationship, partner-related sexual motivation, angry and vengeful behavior, interference with exploratory activities, dysfunctional coping strategies, and disordered resolution. Attachment-related avoidance was weakly and negatively associated with most distress/proximity-seeking reactions to breakups and strongly and positively associated with avoidant and self-reliant coping strategies. Security (low scores on the anxiety and avoidance dimensions) was associated with social coping strategies (e.g., using friends and family as "safe havens"). Attachment insecurity, particularly anxiety, was associated with using drugs and alcohol to cope with loss.     

Breaking up is Hard to do,Especially for Strongly “Preoccupied” Lovers

Abstract

Is a relationship breakup harder on certain people? To address this question, the present study investigated the relationship of individuals’ attachment styles to various reported aspects of a relationship's dissolution: initiation of the breakup, emotional reactions to the breakup, reasons for the breakup, and experiences and perceptions following the breakup. One hundred nineteen undergraduates completed an extensive questionnaire concerning a past romantic relationship that had broken up. Feeney, Noller, and Hanrahan's (1994) Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) provided continous measures for five attachment styles or “attitudes”: confidence, discomfort with closeness, need for approval, preoccupation with relationships, and relationships as secondary. Principal-components analyses served to derive criterion indexes from the breakup questionnarie measures, which were individually regressed on the five ASQ scales. As predicted form attachment theory, respondents scoring high on preoccupation with relationships (reflcting anxious/ambivalent attachment) showed distinctive responses to the relationship breakup, in contrast to those scoring high on other attachment styles. Specifically, those strongly preoccupied with relationships reported (a) that their partner was unhappy in the relationship and had initiated the breakup, (b) having experienced difficulty adjusting to the breakup and felling it had been a mistake, and (c) more negative emotion and less positive emotion following the breakup. Implications of these findings are discussed     

母亲-胎儿关系：概念、测量和影响因素

亲子关系并不仅仅始于出生之后,在怀孕期间孕妇就开始建立与胎儿的关系。母亲-胎儿关系是孕妇在怀孕期间对胎儿所产生的一种对胎儿的认知表征、投入的情感以及与胎儿的互动的关系,具有重要的理论与实践意义。目前用于测量母亲-胎儿关系水平的主要工具为母亲-胎儿依恋量表,母亲孕期依恋量表以及胚胎依恋量表。多种因素会对母亲-胎儿关系产生影响,主要包括孕妇年龄、文化等人口学因素,孕周、孕期检查等怀孕相关因素,以及人格特点、心理健康、社会支持等心理社会因素。未来研究要对研究方法进行整合、更多关注父亲-胎儿关系的发展特点,并尝试探索干预措施来提高这种亲子关系的质量。     

The Role of Attachment Anxiety and Avoidance in Communication Modality and Relationship Quality of Romantic Relationships Initiated Online

This study explores the relationships among an individual's attachment anxiety and avoidance, the ratio of technology mediated communication (TMC) in their relationship, and relationship quality for individuals who met their romantic partners online. Participants (N = 219) consisted of individuals between the ages of 18–25, who were US citizens, and met a romantic partner utilizing online dating, dating mobile web applications, social networking sites, online chatrooms, or any way of meeting through technology. A survey measuring relationship beliefs, relationship attitudes, and use of technology was distributed and completed via MTurk. Structural equation modeling revealed that anxious attachment was associated with a higher ratio of TMC, whereas avoidant attachment was not significantly related with the ratio of TMC. Higher ratios of TMC were associated with lower relationship quality. Implications for intervention are discussed.     

早期养育经验与母子依恋水平的相关研究

运用沃特期-迪因儿童依恋行为分类卡片的相关条目,评估81名寄宿制幼儿园幼儿与母亲的依恋水平,并用自编问卷回溯幼儿三岁前的养育经验及相关基本信息。结果显示：幼儿与母亲的依恋总体上都处于比较积极的状态;主要照料者非保姆的、母亲产后复工时间在三个月内的、母亲主观陪伴愿望强的、与母亲分离增多始于2岁半及以上的、母亲从未威胁抛弃的,母子依恋总分较高;女孩、主要照料者非保姆的、母亲主观陪伴愿望强的、与母亲分离增多始于2岁半及以上的、母亲从未威胁抛弃的,与母亲直接相关的依恋分数都较高;高年级及母亲从未威胁抛弃的,一般行为倾向上表现更为积极;断奶和母亲产后复工时间在三个月内的、母亲无暇或不能全心全意陪伴的、母亲从未威胁抛弃的,对陌生人的兴趣和接近性更强;而喂养方式、母亲实际陪伴孩子时间的多少、及早期与母亲的分离经验,未发现对各依恋指标的显著性影响。提示：早期养育中,母亲对孩子的主观感情倾向和相处质量,更有利于增进母子依恋及相关积极行为;了解孩子心理的阶段性发展特点也具重要意义。     

青少年家庭功能对其主观幸福感的影响-同伴依恋和亲社会行为的序列中介效应

以2949名中学生为被试,采用问卷法考察青少年的总体家庭功能、同伴依恋和亲社会行为对其主观幸福感的序列中介作用。结果表明：（1）总体家庭功能、同伴依恋、亲社会行为、生活满意度、积极情感两两间正相关显著,而与消极情感均显著负相关;（2）在控制年龄、性别、SES、社会赞许性后,总体家庭功能既能直接显著预测主观幸福感,也能分别通过同伴依恋、亲社会行为,及两者的链式关系间接作用于主观幸福感。     

Parent mind-mindedness,sensitivity, and infant affect: Implications for attachment with mothers and fathers

Previous research examining links between parenting and attachment has focused on behavioral aspects of parenting such as sensitivity. However, by assessing how parents reflect on infants’ mental states (mind-mindedness) we gain a broader understanding of parenting and how it impacts attachment. Mothers, fathers, and their infants (N = 135) participated in the Still Face Paradigm (SFP) at 3-, 5-, and 7- months of age, and the Strange Situation with mothers at 12 months and fathers at 14 months. Parent sensitivity and infant affect were coded from the SFP and all videos were transcribed and later coded for parents’ use of appropriate and non-attuned mind-mindedness toward their infants. Attachment with each parent was coded from the Strange Situation. Mixed effects models examined trajectories of parents’ mind-mindedness in relation to parent sensitivity and infant affect across attachment groups. Significant differences between parent gender and attachment category were detected. Specifically, parents who were less sensitive were also less mind-minded toward insecure-avoidant infants; parents used more non-attuned mind-mindedness when infants had higher negative affect. Findings suggest that, in addition to parent sensitivity, parents’ use of appropriate and non-attuned mind-mindedness during a parent-infant interaction provides insight into the developing attachment relationship for mothers and fathers.     

La mise en place des représentations d'attachement au sein du couple : parts relatives à l'enfance et au conjoint

The aim of the present study is to compare childhood attachment representations with representations relative to present love relationships, and examine the possible role of the partner's representations when differences are found between the two types of representations. Twenty-two couples passed the Adult Attachment Interview (George et al., 1985), as well as an attachment interview on their present love relationship. Statistical analyses revealed a stronger concordance between childhood and adult representations among insecure people, compared with secure participants. Also, men seemed more inclined to maintain the same type of attachment representations regarding their love relationship as those developed with respect to parents. These findings suggest that defensive exclusion prevents the formation of new attachment representations and the updating of internal working models. The role played by gender remains unclear and warrants further research.     

The relationship between psychopathic traits and attachment behavior in a non-clinical population

Attachment processes have been proposed to play a key role in the development of the core features of psychopathy (Fowles & Dindo, 2006). The findings reported in the literature regarding the associations between attachment and psychopathic traits are far from conclusive, especially in non-clinical populations. The present study investigated the relationship between self-reported attachment behavior and psychopathic traits in a college sample. Two-hundred nine participants completed the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised scale and the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy scale. Controlling for gender and race, hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that individuals high in both attachment avoidance and attachment anxiety had higher primary psychopathy scores. Both individuals high in attachment avoidance and individuals high in attachment anxiety had higher secondary psychopathy scores. Implications of these findings for future research and clinical practice are discussed.     

Gender and information and communication technologies (ICT) anxiety: male self-assurance and female hesitation.

This article presents the results of a quantitative study (n = 1,058) of the gender divide in ICT attitudes. In general, females had more negative attitudes towards computers and the Internet than did men. Results indicate a positive relationship between ICT experience and ICT attitudes. This experience is measured by period of time using a computer and self-perceived computer and Internet experience. Further analyses on the impact of gender on this correlation of ICT experience and ICT attitudes were conducted by means of a multivariate model. General Linear Model (GLM) analysis revealed that there was a significant effect of gender, computer use, and self-perceived computer experience on computer anxiety attitudes, as well as several significant interaction effects. Males were found to have less computer anxiety than females; respondents who have used computers for a longer period of time and respondents with a higher self-perception of experience also show less computer anxiety. However, the GLM plot shows that the influence of computer experience works in different ways for males and females. Computer experience has a positive impact on decreasing computer anxiety for men, but a similar effect was not found for women. The model was also tested for computer liking and Internet-liking factors.     

Attachment styles and close relationships: A four-year prospective study

A longitudinal study of 177 adults examined the stability of adult attachment styles and of romantic relationships over a 4-year period. Findings included the following: (a) attachment styles were highly stable over time; (b) Time 1 attachment style was a significant predictor of Time 2 relationship status, but (c) this effect was mediated by concurrent attachment style at Time 2; (d) secure respondents were less likely than insecure respondents to report one or more breakups during the 4-year interval, but (e) paradoxically, ambivalent respondents were just as likely as secure respondents to be in a relationship with the same partner they had identified 4 years earlier; and (f) attachment stability was moderated to some extent by the experience of breakup or initiation of new relationships during the interim. Respondents' ability to recall their previous attachment style was also examined. Methodological and theoretical implications are discussed, particularly with respect to the conceptualization of attachment styles as traits versus reflections of current relationship status.     

Gender role attitudes,relationship efficacy,and self-disclosure in intimate relationships

Drawing from the intimacy process model and data from 5,042 individuals who remained partnered across Waves 1 and 2 of the German Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics (pairfam), this study examined the contributions of traditional gender role attitudes and relationship efficacy in predicting levels of self-disclosure within an intimate relationship. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated females scored higher than males on self-disclosure and relationship efficacy measures but lower on traditional gender role attitudes. An ordinary least squares regression analysis revealed relationship efficacy was a stronger predictor of self-disclosure compared to traditional gender role attitudes, which were not associated with self-disclosure. The findings suggest attitudes with an interpersonal motivational system may be especially important for setting the intimacy process into motion within an intimate union.     

Gender role and attitudes toward rape in male and female college students

This study examined the relationship between college students' gender roles and attitudes toward rape. Subjects were 145 male and 374 female college students with a mean age of 20.1 years. The institution has a 12.5% minority population. Subjects received a questionnaire packet containing the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI), an acquaintance or stranger rape scenario, a questionnaire designed to assess attitudes toward the scenario, the short version of the Attitudes Towards Women Scale (AWS), the Rape Myth Acceptance Scale (RMAS), and the Attitudes Toward Rape questionnaire (ATR). It was hypothesized that participants classified as masculine according to the BSRI would believe in more rape myths, hold more pro-rape attitudes, and believe in more traditional gender roles than would those who were classified as feminine, androgynous, or undifferentiated. A gender by gender role interaction on the AWS revealed that feminine and androgynous men were exceptions to the pattern that men had significantly less egalitarian views than women. Responses to the scenario questionnaire suggested that women and men view acquaintance rape differently, and that men may experience more attitude change as a result of a rape awareness workshop than women.     

Priming attachment security improves attitudes towards a range of therapies

We sought to understand how attachment orientation influenced attitudes towards different types of psychological therapies. In two studies, we (1) examined attachment orientation as a predictor of attitudes towards different therapies and (2) tested whether attachment security priming could improve attitudes. Study 1 (n = 339) found associations between attachment orientation and attitudes towards, and likelihood of using different therapies. Positive and negative attitudes about different therapies mediated the relationship between attachment avoidance and likelihood of use. Study 2 (n = 412) showed that primed security (vs. neutral prime) improved attitudes towards relational, non‐relational and distanced‐relational therapies for those with a fearful‐avoidant attachment orientation. For relational and distanced‐relational therapies, the mechanism of this effect was increased cognitive openness. Attachment orientation is a determinant of therapy attitudes and anticipated help‐seeking behaviour. Priming security may promote open‐minded decision‐making about some therapies. Findings are discussed with relevance to attachment theory, research and clinical practice.     

Attachment,religiousness, and distress among the religious and spiritual: links between religious syncretism and compensation

Using the Adult Attachment Interview, we explored differences in attachment, distress, and religiousness among groups of traditionally religious, New Age spiritual, and religiously syncretistic (high on both) participants (Ps) (N?=?75). Religiously syncretistic Ps showed a preponderance of insecure attachment and were raised by non-religious parents, who were estimated as relatively insensitive. Moreover, religiously syncretistic Ps perceived a personal relationship with God and had experienced increased religiousness/spirituality during difficult life periods, but did not suffer elevated distress. New Agers often mirrored the religiously syncretistic, but had a more even secure–insecure attachment distribution, typically did not perceive a personal relationship with God, and did suffer elevated distress. Traditionally religious Ps were low on distress and raised by religious parents, estimated as relatively sensitive. We conclude that religious syncretism may often express religion/spirituality as compensation. Finally, we speculate that a perceived relationship with God may attenuate distress among those at risk.     

Trajectories of Adjustment to Couple Relationship Separation

To test a stress‐diathesis model of adjustment to separation, the current study describes the trajectories of different aspects of separation adjustment in people formerly married or cohabiting, and moderators of those trajectories. A convenience sample of 303 recently separated individuals (169 women; 134 men) completed assessments of their emotional attachment to the former partner, loneliness, psychological distress, and coparenting conflict at two time points 6 months apart. Multilevel modeling of the overlapping multicohort design was used to estimate the trajectories of these different aspects of adjustment as a function of time since separation, marital status, gender, presence of children from the relationship, who initiated separation, social support, and anxious attachment. Attachment to the former partner, loneliness, and psychological distress were initially high but improved markedly across the 2 years after separation, but coparenting conflict was high and stable. Adjustment problems were similar in men and women, and in those formerly married or cohabiting, except that reported coparenting conflict was higher in men than women. Low social support and high anxious attachment predicted persistent attachment to the former partner, loneliness, and psychological distress. Coparenting conflict is a common, chronic problem for many separated individuals, and individuals with certain psychological vulnerabilities also experience chronic personal distress.     

Attachment Anxiety, Verbal Immediacy, and Blood Pressure: Results from a Laboratory-Analogue Study Following Marital Separation

Marital separation and divorce increase risk for all-cause morbidity and mortality. Using a laboratory analogue paradigm, the present study examined attachment anxiety, language use, and blood pressure (BP) reactivity among 119 (n = 43 men, 76 women) recently separated adults who were asked to mentally reflect on their relationship history and separation experience. We created a language use composite of verbal immediacy from participants' stream-of-consciousness recordings about their separation experience as a behavioral index of attachment-related hyperactivation. Verbal immediacy moderated the association between attachment anxiety and BP at the beginning of a divorce-specific activation task. Participants reporting high attachment anxiety who discussed their separation in a first-person, present-oriented and highly engaged manner evidenced the highest levels of BP at the start of the divorce-specific task. Results provide a deeper understanding of the association between marital dissolution and health and suggest that verbal immediacy may be a useful behavioral index of hyperactivating coping strategies.     

A mediation model linking attachment to God,self-compassion,and mental health

Attachment theory posits that insecure attachment is a risk factor for the development of anxiety and depression and ample evidence supports this idea. Research has also demonstrated links between attachment to God and mental health, but little is known about the emotion regulatory mechanism that underlies this relationship. The present study explored the explanatory role of self-compassion in the relation between attachment to God and anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction in a sample of 181 adults who completed an online survey. Elevated attachment anxiety and avoidance were associated with higher depression and anxiety, and lower life satisfaction. Self-compassion mediated these associations (in an inverse direction for anxiety and depression), suggesting that people who feel uncomfortable depending on God, or who fear God's rejection, have difficulty extending kindness to themselves. Possible interventions are discussed in the context of these results.     

Structure and Measurement Invariance of Adult Romantic Attachment

Romantic attachment is a popular theory for explaining affect, cognition, and behavior in romantic contexts. This popularity has led to a surge of self-report measures assessing dimensions of attachment. In this study, we considered the ability of 2 common attachment measures, the Adult Attachment Questionnaire (AAQ) and the Experience in Close Relationships–Revised (ECR–R), to replicate the avoidant and anxious attachment factors. We also determined the degree of measurement invariance across, and mean differences between, genders and single and nonsingle individuals. Both the AAQ (N = 650) and the ECR–R (N = 1,271) successfully distinguished avoidant and attachment factors. The AAQ showed evidence for partial strong measurement invariance, whereas the ECR-R showed strict factorial invariance for both gender and relationship status. Gender differences were detected on both measures in a direction consistent with previous research, with males exhibiting higher levels of avoidant attachment (relative to females) and females exhibiting higher levels of anxious attachment (relative to males). Furthermore, when compared to individuals who were currently single, those in romantic relationships exhibited lower levels of avoidant tendencies. This research aligns with the notion that the AAQ and ECR–R reliably assess similar constructs, across genders and single and nonsingle individuals.