Emotion regulation unveiled through the categorical lens of attachment

BACKGROUND

Emotion regulation, the process by which individuals manage and modify their emotional experiences, expressions, and responses to adaptively navigate and cope with various situations, plays a crucial role in daily life. Our study investigates the variations in emotion regulation strategies among individuals with different attachment styles (AS). Specifically, we examine how individuals with secure, anxious, avoidant, and fearful attachment styles effectively utilize cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression to regulate their emotions.

METHODS

A total of n = 98 adults were instructed to attend, reappraise, or suppress their emotions while viewing negative and neutral images from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS) in an experimental emotion regulation task. After completing the task, participants rated the valence and arousal elicited by the images. Attachment styles were measured using the ECR-12 questionnaire and then categorized into four AS.

RESULTS

Our study revealed that individuals with secure AS (n = 39) effectively reduced displeasure through cognitive reappraisal but experienced levels of displeasure with expressive suppression. Anxious AS (n = 16) individuals successfully reduced displeasure using cognitive reappraisal but struggled to regulate arousal and effectively use expressive suppression. Avoidant AS (n = 24) individuals could reduce displeasure with both strategies but experienced high arousal during suppression attempts. Fearful AS (n = 19) individuals effectively regulated both displeasure and arousal using either strategy. However, Secure AS individuals showed superior reappraisal efficacy, significantly reducing arousal levels compared to the Fearful AS group. Both Secure and Avoidant AS groups experienced higher valence during reappraisal relative to a baseline, indicating a decrease in displeasure.

CONCLUSIONS

Individuals with different AS exhibit variations in the effectiveness of their use of emotion regulation strategies. Our findings reinforce the significance of AS in shaping emotion regulation processes and emphasize the need for tailored approaches to support individuals with different attachment orientations.

What Do Different People Look for in a Partner? Effects of Sex, Sexual Orientation, and Mating Strategies on Partner Preferences

Partner preferences are an important differential in relationship formation and evolutionary fitness, and vary according to individual, ecological, and social factors. In this study, we evaluated the variation in preference for intelligence, kindness, physical attractiveness, health, and socioeconomic level among individuals of different sexes and sexual orientations in a Brazilian sample. We analyzed the preference scores of 778 heterosexual, bisexual, and homosexual men and women in three budgeted mate design tasks (low vs. medium vs. high budget) and their association with sociosexuality, attachment styles, homogamy, and willingness to engage in short- and long-term relationships. Results indicated a global trait preference order, with intelligence ranking first, followed by kindness, physical attractiveness, health, and lastly by socioeconomic status. Typical sex differences were observed mostly within the heterosexual group, and specific combinations of sex and sexual orientation were linked to variation in preference for physical attractiveness, kindness, and socioeconomic status. We also found unique associations of the other variables with partner preferences and with willingness to engage in short- or long-term relationships. By exploring the partner preferences of non-heterosexual individuals from a Latin American country, an underrepresented group in evolutionary psychology research, our results help understand the universal and specific factors that guide partner preferences and human sexual behavior.

Comparative analysis of ROCKET-driven and classic EEG features in predicting attachment styles

Predicting attachment styles using AI algorithms remains relatively unexplored in scientific literature. This study addresses this gap by employing EEG data to evaluate the effectiveness of ROCKET-driven features versus classic features, both analyzed using the XGBoost machine learning algorithm, for classifying 'secure' or 'insecure' attachment styles.Participants, fourth-year engineering students aged 20-35, first completed the ECR-R questionnaire. A subset then underwent EEG sessions while performing the Arrow Flanker Task, receiving success or failure feedback for each trial.Our findings reveal the effectiveness of both feature sets. The dataset with ROCKET-derived features demonstrated an 88.41% True Positive Rate (TPR) in classifying 'insecure' attachment styles, compared to the classic features dataset, which achieved a notable TPR as well. Visual representations further support ROCKET-derived features' proficiency in identifying insecure attachment tendencies, while the classic features exhibited limitations in classification accuracy. Although the ROCKET-derived features exhibited higher TPR, the classic features also presented a substantial predictive ability.In conclusion, this study advances the integration of AI in psychological assessments, emphasizing the significance of feature selection for specific datasets and applications. While both feature sets effectively classified EEG-based attachment styles, the ROCKET-derived features demonstrated a superior performance across multiple metrics, making them the preferred choice for this study.

Attachment Theory and Sexual Offending: Making the Connection

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The purpose of this review is to discuss how attachment theory can be applied to explain sexual violence. Specifically, it discusses how the development of certain risk factors contributes to these behaviors and how attachment-based models can be used to address this issue through prevention and therapeutic interventions.

RECENT FINDINGS

Recent research demonstrates that individuals who commit sexual offenses have higher rates of insecure attachment styles and that these styles are associated with a number of criminogenic risk factors associated with sexual offending. Such risk factors include cognitive processing difficulties, affect dysregulation, and challenges in interpersonal relationships, among others. Fortunately, treatment interventions have been shown to foster more secure attachment styles and reduce these risk factors. Attachment theory is a viable theory to both understand and intervene with those who have committed sexual violence to reduce the risk factors associated with sexual violence.

The interplay of attachment styles and marital infidelity: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives

Marital infidelity is a highly distressing experience for those involved. Understanding the psychological factors related to infidelity can help develop targeted interventions. The primary aim of this study was to assess the association between attachment styles and marital infidelity.

Methods

Seventeen studies were included, sourced from electronic databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and PsycInfo, with no time limitations, up to April 2023. The search employed terms like "attachment AND marital infidelity." Study quality was evaluated using the Risk of Bias Assessment Tool from RevMan version 5.3.

Results

The meta-analysis involved a total of 13,666 participants, ranging from 208 to 4047 individuals. Findings showed that higher levels of anxiety and avoidance in attachment were significantly associated with increased marital infidelity (r = 0.18, 95 % CI = 0.14-0.22, p < 0.0001). Conversely, weaker attachment insecurity was linked to reduced rates of marital infidelity. Additionally, both dismissive and fearful attachment styles correlated with marital infidelity, with respective weighted effect sizes of r = 0.07, p < 0.001 (95 % CI = 0.04-0.10) and r = 0.19, p < 0.001 (95 % CI = 0.10-0.29). No association was found between preoccupied attachment and infidelity.

Conclusion

Individuals with insecure attachment styles, specifically those with high levels of anxiety or avoidance, are more likely to engage in marital infidelity. Attachment styles should be a focus in couples therapy, especially for treatment related to infidelity. Assessing and addressing these underlying attachment issues can better guide therapists in their work with couples facing infidelity.

Self-Efficacy, Self-Love, and Fear of Compassion Mediate the Effect of Attachment Styles on Life Satisfaction: A Serial Mediation Analysis

This study examined the effect of attachment styles on the life satisfaction of adults and the serial mediating effect of self-efficacy, self-love, and fear of compassion in this effect for the first time in the literature to the best of our knowledge. The study group consisted of a total of 639 adults. As a result of the study, it is seen that secure attachment affects life satisfaction positively. This process is mediated by the variables of high self-efficacy, high self-love, and low fear of compassion. However, avoidant attachment seems to negatively affect life satisfaction. This process is mediated by low self-efficacy, low self-love, and high fear of compassion variables. Apart from these results, it was observed that anxious-ambivalent attachment negatively affected life satisfaction, but this relationship was not mediated by self-efficacy, self-love, and fear of compassion. This result may be due to the fact that people with anxious-ambivalent attachment style perceive others positively despite seeing themselves as worthless and inadequate. These people may not want to show compassion for themselves because they have low self-worth, but they may show compassion for others because they find them valuable.

Associations of peripheral blood DNA methylation and estimated monocyte proportion differences during infancy with toddler attachment style

Attachment is a motivational system promoting felt security to a caregiver resulting in a persistent internal working model of interpersonal behavior. Attachment styles are developed in early social environments and predict future health and development outcomes with potential biological signatures, such as epigenetic modifications like DNA methylation (DNAm). Thus, we hypothesized infant DNAm would associate with toddler attachment styles. An epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) of blood DNAm from 3-month-old infants was regressed onto children's attachment style from the Strange Situation Procedure at 22-months at multiple DNAm Cytosine-phosphate-Guanine (CpG) sites. The 26 identified CpGs associated with proinflammatory immune phenotypes and cognitive development. In post-hoc analyses, only maternal cognitive-growth fostering, encouraging intellectual exploration, contributed. For disorganized children, DNAm-derived cell-type proportions estimated higher monocytes -cells in immune responses hypothesized to increase with early adversity. Collectively, these findings suggested the potential biological embedding of both adverse and advantageous social environments as early as 3-months-old.

Emotional intelligence as a mediator between attachment security and empathy in pre-clinical medical students: A multi-center cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE

To explore the association of emotional intelligence (EI) and attachment security (AS) with empathy dimensions in medical students by examining the mediating role of EI.

METHODS

In a cross-sectional design, the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ), and demographic questions were administrated to second-year medical students of two medical schools in Northern Italy.

RESULTS

253 medical students (56.13% female), aged 19-29, participated in this study. AS positively correlated to Empathic Concern (r = 0.17, p = 0.008) and Perspective Taking (r = 0.24, p < 0.001), and negatively to Personal Distress (r = -0.33, p < 0.001). Individuals with the same level of AS and a higher score on EQ-i had a higher score (β = 0.072, p = 0.033) on empathy latent factor (at the basis of Empathic Concern and Perspective Taking) and a lower score (β = -0.290, p < 0.001) on Personal Distress than those with a lower EQ-i score.

CONCLUSION

This study shows that EI completely mediated the relationship between AS and empathy dimensions among medical students.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

EI training and workshop should be considered when designing educational interventions and programs to enhance empathy and decrease interpersonal distress in medical students.

Attachment styles and their association with aggression, hostility, and anger in Lebanese adolescents: a national study

Background

The idea that attachment styles can affect the level of anger in an individual educes a reason why people develop anger issues and behavioral problems in adolescence that escalate into adulthood. Lebanon suffers from a shortage of data pertaining to insecure attachment styles and the affective and cognitive aspects of anger and behavioral anger expression among the Lebanese youth population. This study aimed to investigate the association between attachment dimensions and anger expression (trait anger, hostility, physical aggression, and verbal aggression) among a sample of Lebanese adolescent participants.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was performed between January and May 2019 among 1810 Lebanese high-school students aged 12–18 and used two validated measures, the Adolescent-Relationship Questionnaire (A-RQ) and The Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ). The A-RQ assessed attachment behaviors, while the BPAQ evaluated aggression.

Results

Higher fearful and dismissing attachment styles, and higher physical activity index were significantly associated with higher physical and verbal aggression. A higher fearful attachment style was significantly associated with more anger. A higher secure attachment style was significantly associated with less anger. Higher preoccupied and dismissing attachment styles were significantly associated with higher hostility.

Conclusion

Our findings revealed a significant relationship between both insecure attachment dimensions and the tripartite model of anger expression. This study adds to the anger literature by providing a more informed understanding of how variations in anger expression are linked to the processing of interpersonal interactions, which are the hidden facets of attachment systems.

Attachment styles and happiness in the elderly: the mediating role of reminiscence styles

BACKGROUND

The current study aims to investigate the relationship between attachment styles and happiness through the mediating role of reminiscence styles in the elderly.

METHODS

This was a correlational study of structural equations modelling (SEM) type. The statistical population included all the elderly aged at least 60 years living in Kermanshah province, Iran in 2021, among whom 380 (182 men and 198 women) were selected using convenience sampling method. Participants filled out the questionnaires of Adult Attachment Styles, Oxford Happiness, and Amani et al.'s Reminiscence Styles.

RESULTS

The results indicated that secure attachment style has a positive and negative relationship with positive reminiscence (PR) and negative reminiscence (NR), respectively. However, the opposite held true for both avoidant and ambivalent attachment styles. It was also found that secure attachment style has a positive relationship, and avoidant and ambivalent attachment styles have a negative relationship with happiness. Moreover, participants' gender and age had no moderating effect on the mentioned relationships. The results of SEM indicated that secure and ambivalent attachment styles were associated with happiness through both PR and NR, and avoidant attachment style was associated with happiness only through NR.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings emphasize the significance of the development of internal working models based on the kind of parent-child's reminiscences and narratives, and the lifelong effects of these models.

Exploratory Study of Parenting Differences for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attachment Disorder

The current study explored similarities and differences in parenting stress (PSI) and behaviours in parent reports of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attachment disorder (AD). 155 parents whose children had developmental delays and disorders completed the social communication questionnaire, Randolph attachment questionnaire, strengths and difficulties questionnaire, PSI, and parent-child relationship inventory. Parents of children with AD reported greater levels of PSI than parents of children with ASD. Parents of children reaching criteria for both disorders reported the greatest levels of PSI. Limit setting was poorest in parents of children with both classifications, followed by parents of children with AD, and then ASD. Limit setting mediated the relationship between PSI and child behaviour problems for parents of children with ASD < but not for parents of children with AD. These findings suggest different areas of difficulty for parents of children with these conditions, which may be of help in designing interventions.

The Relationship Between the Oxytocin Level and Rejection Sensitivity, Childhood Traumas, and Attachment Styles in Borderline Personality Disorder

OBJECTIVE

In this study, it is aimed to investigate the relationship between the oxytocin level and the rejection sensitivity, childhood mental traumas, and attachment styles in patients diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD).

METHODS

Participants between the ages of 18-30 were included in the study. The patient group consists of 31 participants and the healthy control group consists of 31 participants. Sociodemographic/Clinical Variables Questionnaire, Relationship Scales Questionnaire, Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire were administered to the participants included in the study. Serum oxytocin levels of the participants were measured using the Elisa method.

RESULTS

The oxytocin levels were found to be significantly lower in patients with BPD than in healthy control subjects, whereas the rejection sensitivity and childhood traumas were found to be significantly higher. No difference was found between the patient and control groups in terms of attachment styles, yet it was determined that there may be differences between the oxytocin levels of the BPD patients according to the attachment styles the patients have.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the findings of this study revealed that the rejection sensitivity in BPD patients is not associated with oxytocin levels and childhood traumas, indicating the need to assess the BPD patients in terms of other biopsychosocial factors related to the etiopathogenesis of BPD.

Effectiveness of an online versus face-to-face psychodynamic counselling intervention for university students before and during the COVID-19 period

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased online counselling interventions, including those aimed at university students. The principal aim of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the online counselling intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic, also with regards to the effectiveness of the face-to-face intervention.

Methods

34 students (Mean age = 23.74; Female = 27) who requested online university counselling during COVID-19 have been compared with 81 (Mean age = 22.8; Female = 60) students who requested university face-to-face counselling before the pandemic. The psychopathological problems were assessed with the Symptom Checklist 90 Revised, attachment styles with the Attachment Style Questionnaire, adverse childhood experiences with Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire, and life satisfaction with the Life Satisfaction Scale.

Results

At the pre-intervention phase, psychological distress was similar in both groups with no differences in the General Severity Index of the SCL-90 R, and there were no significant differences for secure/insecure attachment, adverse childhood experiences, and life satisfaction. The online counselling intervention during the pandemic was effective in reducing psychological distress scales as depression (p = .008), obsessive–compulsive (p = .008), interpersonal sensitivity (p = .005), and anxiety (p = .011), and in the total scale of the SCL-90 R (p = .017). The face-to-face counselling intervention was effective in reducing psychological distress in all subscales and in the total scale of the SCL-90 R (p = .000) and in increasing the level of life satisfaction (p = .023). Attachment style did not moderate the effectiveness of the online and face-to-face interventions.

Conclusions

Students seeking counselling, both before and during the pandemic, show similar levels of psychological distress. The online counselling intervention was almost as effective as face-to-face counselling intervention with respect to psychological distress; it was not effective in increasing life satisfaction.

Couple's Satisfaction among Lebanese adults: validation of the Toronto Alexithymia Scale and Couple Satisfaction Index-4 scales, association with attachment styles and mediating role of alexithymia

Background

Lebanon is passing through an economic crisis leading to a decreased monthly income within a couple and more couple’s dissatisfaction. Furthermore, many studies postulate that the different types of attachment styles affect the romantic relationship experienced between adults. The main objectives of our study were to (1) validate the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS) and Couple Satisfaction Index-4 (CSI-4) scales, and (2) assess the association between attachment styles and couple satisfaction and evaluate the mediating role of alexithymia in these associations.

Methods

This cross-sectional study involved 445 Lebanese participants (April–May 2021). A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was carried out using SPSS AMOS v.24 on the couple satisfaction index and Toronto alexithymia scales’ items. A linear regression was conducted, taking the couple satisfaction index as the dependent variable.

Results

The CFA results of the CSI-4 scale indicated an excellent fit (χ²/df = 3.845/2 = 1.92, TLI = 0.992, RMSEA = 0.046 [95% CI 0.001–0.115] (pclose = 0.436) and CFI = 0.998). The CFA of the TAS indicated a good/acceptable fit (χ²/df = 422.31/132 = 3.2, TLI = 0.89, RMSEA = 0.07 [95% CI 0.063–0.078] (pclose < 0.001) and CFI = 0.91) (items 4 and 8 were removed due to low factor loading (< 0.4)). Being married and higher secure attachment style were significantly associated with more couple satisfaction, whereas older age, higher household crowding index, more alexithymia and mode depression were significantly associated with less couple satisfaction. In addition, alexithymia mediated the association between secure attachment style and couple satisfaction, between preoccupied attachment style and couple satisfaction and between dismissing attachment style and couple satisfaction.

Conclusion

Couple’s satisfaction is positively associated with secure attachment style. In addition, alexithymia plays a mediating role between couple’s satisfaction and attachment styles. Upcoming studies should determine if other mental illnesses play a mediating role between attachment style and couple satisfaction.

Adult attachment style moderates the effect of oxytocin on neural responses to infant emotional faces

Oxytocin (OT) is known for its positive influence on maternal motivation and behavior, however, the effects of intranasal oxytocin (IN-OT) on neural activity during the perception of infant stimuli are often inconsistent. These discrepancies further reveal the need to take into account individual differences in IN-OT research. The present study aims to examine whether the effects of IN-OT on maternal-related neural responses to infant faces were moderated by participants' attachment style. Using a between-groups, double-blind, placebo-controlled design, 65 nulliparous females were randomly assigned to groups receiving a single dose of 24 IU oxytocin or a placebo via intranasal administration. The neural responses of participants were assessed during a facial recognition task with joy, neutral, and crying infant faces. The results indicated that females with high levels of attachment anxiety exhibited decreased right amygdala activity in response to infant joy faces and decreased bilateral insula activity in response to infant crying faces following IN-OT. Meanwhile, IN-OT enhanced bilateral amygdala and left inferior orbital frontal cortex (OFC) activity in response to infant crying faces in females with high levels of attachment avoidance. In addition, some beneficial effects of IN-OT were also observed in females with low levels of attachment avoidance or anxiety. Our findings demonstrated that the beneficial effects of IN-OT on neural responses to infant faces may depend on individual differences in adult attachment style, thereby contributing to our understanding of the role of OT in maternal caregiving.

Parental Acceptance/Rejection Perceptions and Attachment Styles of Men With Online Gambling Disorder

Online gambling disorder has recently emerged as a significant public health issue. Family dynamics play an important role in the development of online gambling disorder. In this research, the aimed to compare the parental acceptance/rejection and attachment styles of individuals with online gambling disorder with a healthy control group. Also, the relationship between parental acceptance/rejection and attachment styles was examined in individuals with online gambling disorder. The study group consisted of 53 male patients with online gambling disorder and 57 healthy controls. The individuals with online gambling disorder perceived more rejection from mothers but especially from fathers than the individuals in the control group. Paternal hostility/aggression and indifference/neglect are determinants of online gambling behavior. The individuals with online gambling disorder had lower levels of secure attachment and higher levels of dismissive and fearful attachment than the individuals in the control group. Both secure attachment style and dismissive attachment style are thought to be determinants of gambling behavior. Mother-father rejection and insecure attachment are important in terms of creating risk for online gambling. Assessment of the effects of maternal and especially paternal rejection in online gambling disorder will be beneficial within the scope of preventive mental health.

Hypersexual behavior and attachment styles in a non-clinical sample: The mediation role of depression and post-traumatic stress symptoms

INTRODUCTION

Hypersexuality is a complex behavioral dysfunction concerning the excess of sexual activities. In this study, we aim to investigate the role of attachment styles, post-traumatic and depression symptoms in hypersexual behavior.

METHODS

We recruited through an online platform a snowball convenience sample of 1025 subjects (females: n=731; 71.3%; males: 294; 28.7%; age: 29.62±10.90) and we administered them a sociodemographic questionnaire, with a psychometric protocol composed by the Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (HBI) to assess hypersexuality, the Relationship Questionnaire (RQ) for the attachment styles, the International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ) to evaluate the trauma and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) for depression.

RESULTS

We found a significant and predictive impact of preoccupied and fearful attachment styles on hypersexual behavior (β=.116; p<.0001 and β=.121p<.0001, respectively). The categorical analysis of RQ confirmed also statistically significant differences between secure attachment style with fearful and preoccupied ones in terms of HBI levels (secure=30.01±10.79; preoccupied=35.50±14.46; fearful=36.57±13.50). Moreover, we found that depression symptoms and the total score of ITQ also resulted predictive for hypersexuality (β=.323; p<.0001 and β=.063; p<.04). However, in our model, depression and post-traumatic symptoms played a mediation role between insecure attachment and hypersexual behavior.

CONCLUSION

This study found a fundamental role of insecure attachment styles, post-traumatic and depression symptoms in the development of problematic sexuality. Hypersexual behavior is related in a causal manner with an insecure attachment style, fearful and preoccupied attachment, particularly. Nevertheless, the traumatic core of personality together with depression symptoms could play a mediation role towards the hypersexual behavior.

The Roles of Attachment Style, Self-Efficacy, and Impulsivity on the Prediction of Attitudes toward Substance Use in Male Adolescents

The aim of this study was to examine the role of attachment styles, self-efficacy, and impulsivity on the prediction of attitudes toward substance abuse among male adolescents. Participants were 199 male adolescents from Najafabad City, Isfahan province, Iran. A demographic questionnaire, the Attachment Style Measure (ASM), the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES), the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS), and the Attitude toward Substance Use Scale (ASUS) were used in this study. Analysis showed that avoidance and ambivalent attachment patterns and impulsiveness were significantly positively correlated with attitudes toward substance use. On the other hand, secure attachment style and self-efficacy were significantly negatively associated with attitudes toward substance use. Findings showed that attachment styles, self-efficacy, and impulsiveness account for 58% of the variance in attitudes toward substance use among these adolescents. This study confirmed the predictive role of attachment styles, self-efficacy, and impulsivity in the prediction of the attitudes toward substance use in male adolescents.

Give me your password! What are you hiding? Associated factors of intimate partner violence through technological abuse

The present study explored the associated factors of intimate partner violence through technological abuse (ITPV) in a sample of 1113 participants aged 18 to 65 (71.3% females). Our research's primary questions were the following: 1). Is there a significant link between relationship attachment styles and ITPV perpetration or victimization?; 2). Is there a significant link between participants' demographic and relationship characteristics (i.e., relationship length and partners' fidelity), online behavior (i.e., benign and toxic disinhibition), moral disengagement, psychological distress), and ITPV perpetration or victimization?; and 3). Did the COVID-19 pandemic increase ITPV perpetration or victimization?. We analyzed our data by creating three different groups, depending on participants' answers concerning ITPV, i.e., the overall sample, abusers' and victims' groups. Our main results suggested significant, positive correlations between ITPV perpetration and victimization, moral disengagement, psychological distress, and online disinhibition. Age negatively correlated with IPVT victimization and perpetration. We also found significant associations between participants' dominant relationship attachment style and their own and partners' cheating behavior, as well as ITPV-victimization and perpetration. Finally, 13.7% to 23% of participants in all three groups considered that the Covid-19 increased the frequency of ITPV behaviors (for both abusers and victims). Results are discussed considering their theoretical and practical implications for domestic violence and the potential related prevention and intervention strategies.

Attachment styles, identification of feelings and psychiatric symptoms in functional neurological disorders

OBJECTIVE

The contribution of psychological and psychiatric symptoms in the development of Functional Neurological Disorders (FND) is unclear. We therefore aimed to investigate the role of different attachment styles (AS) and their relationship with psychiatric symptoms in FND patients as compared with both subjects with neurological disorders (ND) and healthy controls (HC); and the possible differences between patients with functional movement disorders (FMD) and with functional seizures.

METHODS

In this case-control study, forty-six patients with FND were compared to 34 with ND and 30 HC, by means of an extensive battery to investigate the presence of alexithymia, depression, anxiety, dissociation and to explore their AS using the Revised Experiences in Close Relationships instrument (ECR-R).

RESULTS

Patients with FND had higher depression and alexithymia as well as an avoidant pattern on the ECR-R than patients with ND. In the FND group, ECR-R avoidance was an independent predictor of psychiatric symptoms and, altogether, ECR-R avoidance, the somatic-affective component of depression and difficulty identifying feelings were independent predictors of FND. Gender, anxiety and difficulty identifying feelings predicted the presence of functional seizures.

CONCLUSION

The avoidant AS may be an important psychological factor influencing the presence of mood disorders and alexithymia. Their co-occurence might drive maladaptive responses underlying the presence of FND. Although we demonstrated a large overlap between FND phenotypes, patients with functional seizures might have higher alexithymia, which in turn could explain a defensive response less anchored to body reactions and physical symptoms.

Attachment Styles, Self-Esteem, Flexible Goal Adjustment, and Intimate Relationship Satisfaction in Women: A Moderated Mediation Model

The present study aimed to examine the psychological mechanism underlying the relationship between attachment style and intimate relationship satisfaction in women. For this purpose, a cross-sectional research design was employed in which 233 women (M_age = 28.16 years) who were currently in a romantic relationship completed a questionnaire that assessed attachment style, relationship satisfaction, self-esteem, and flexible goal adjustment (FGA). The results showed that both high attachment anxiety and high attachment avoidance were associated with low relationship satisfaction. Self-esteem mediated the relationship between attachment insecurity and relationship satisfaction. Moreover, the mediation effect of self-esteem was moderated by FGA, such that only in women with high FGA was self-esteem a significant mediator in the relationship between an insecure attachment style and relationship satisfaction. The results have implications for enhancing women's relationship satisfaction.

Intertwined associations among attachment styles, emotional dysregulation, and ADHD: examining unique associations with general risk-taking behavior

Attachment insecurity, emotional dysregulation, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have all been implicated across the literature with various forms of negative life outcomes and increased risk-taking behavior (RTB). Furthermore, abundant research has demonstrated that the three seem to go together. Given these intercorrelations, it is unclear if any of them possess exclusive links with RTB independent of the others across multiple life domains. The present study examined the relations among attachment styles, emotional dysregulation, ADHD symptoms, and hypothetical RTBs across multiple real-life domains. Including a total of 155 mostly undergraduate students, we found in the main analysis that only ADHD symptoms were associated with RTB over and above all other variables. Specifically, the links between both attachment insecurity and emotional dysregulation with RTB disappeared when ADHD symptoms were included in the final model, but not vice versa. An exploratory analysis suggested that attachment insecurity was linked to romantic/sexual RTB over and above the others. These results further substantiate the link between ADHD symptoms and a general propensity for RTB and demonstrate that the link between the two seems to be inherent to the disorder and independent of its co-occurrence with attachment insecurity and emotional dysregulation.

Analysis of the mediating effect of mentalization on the relationship between attachment styles and emotion dysregulation

The current study aims to explore the relationship between attachment styles, mentalization and emotion dysregulation. Moreover, the mediation effect of mentalization in the relationship between attachment and emotion dysregulation is analyzed. A sample composed of 607 participants taken from the Spanish general population completed the measures in a cross-sectional designed study. The results show that secure attachment is negatively related to emotion dysregulation dimensions, whereas insecure attachment styles show a positive correlation. Furthermore, the mentalization variables are in general significantly related to emotion dysregulation. The mediation model shows a large mediational effect size (f²  = 2.64). The results suggest that mentalization significantly mediates the relationship between emotion dysregulation and preoccupation, self-sufficiency, and childhood trauma. These results have important implications, as they indicate that clinical interventions on mentalization should reduce emotion dysregulation even in those people with a predominant insecure attachment style.

The relationship between neuroticism and suicidal thoughts among medical students: Moderating role of attachment styles

Aim:

The present study strives to find an experimental response to these questions: “Is the relationship between neuroticism and suicidal thoughts a simple relationship? Or are there other psychopathological variables such as attachment styles that also affect it?”

Subjects and Methods:

In this cross-sectional study, 376 medical students were selected from the three major cities of Iran using multi-stage sampling method from July 2018 to September 2018 and were evaluated using the demographic information questionnaire, Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation (BSSI), the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-FFI), and the Adult Attachment Questionnaire (AAQ).

Results:

The overall prevalence of having suicidal thoughts among Iranian medical students was 17%. Moreover, the prevalence of suicide among the female, widowed, separated, and divorced students was higher than others. There was also a significant correlation between suicidal thoughts, gender, relational status, neuroticism, avoidant insecure attachment style, secure attachment style, and anxious/ambivalent insecure attachment style. Additionally, the attachment styles have a moderating role in the relationship between neuroticism and suicidal thoughts.

Conclusion:

Based on the current study, it is concluded that despite the presence of neuroticism in medical students, the attachment styles can reduce the risk of suicide as moderator variables. Hence, attachment styles can be considered a potential treatment goal in the prevention of suicide.

Adverse childhood experiences, dissociation, and anxious attachment style as risk factors of gaming disorder

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), attachment styles, dissociation, and symptoms of gaming disorder (GD). Methods: The total sample of the survey was 1288 gamers who completed a set of questionnaires via the Internet; they included questions on ACEs, attachment styles (anxious and avoidance styles in intimate relationships), symptoms of dissociation, and GD. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was performed to examine the detailed relationships between variables.

RESULTS

In the hypothesized model, ACEs, dissociation, and the scales of avoidance and anxiety were considered predictors of gaming disorder. Only the avoidance subscale proved to be statistically insignificant; the model without this variable fit the data and had good psychometric properties.

CONCLUSIONS

To conclude, this study showed a link between adverse childhood experiences, dissociation, and anxiety experienced in relationships as significant risk factors for symptoms of gaming disorder.

Exposure to Domestic Violence during Adolescence: Coping Strategies and Attachment Styles as Early Moderators and their Relationship to Functioning during Adulthood

The present study aimed to investigate the impact of exposure to domestic violence during adolescence on an individual's psychological health, ability to regulate emotions, and sense of satisfaction with life, during adulthood. Additionally, it aimed to investigate the long-term role of different coping strategies and attachment with primary caregiver, during adolescence, as potential moderators in the relationship between severity of domestic violence exposure during adolescence and an individual's functioning during adulthood. A total of 218 adult participants completed measures regarding exposure to domestic violence, engagement in coping strategies, and attachment with primary caregiver, during adolescence, and psychological health, ability to regulate emotions, and sense of satisfaction with life, during adulthood. Ninety-two participants reported domestic violence exposure during adolescence. Two-way analyses of variance indicated that participants who were exposed to domestic violence during adolescence were more likely to report negative functioning during adulthood. Correlational analysis indicated that severity of domestic violence exposure during adolescence was positively correlated with engagement in avoidance-focused coping strategies and insecure attachment, during adolescence, and negative functioning during adulthood. Moderation analyses indicated that engagement in avoidance-focused coping strategies and insecure attachment with primary caregiver, during adolescence, moderated the relationship between severity of domestic violence exposure during adolescence and functioning during adulthood, but only in low-moderate severity of exposure to domestic violence. These findings confirm the long-term impact of domestic violence exposure during adolescence on an individual's functioning during adulthood, and provide new information that certain coping strategies and attachment with primary caregiver during adolescence may buffer against the impact.

Attachment styles as predictors of self-reported empathy in medical students during pre-clinical years

OBJECTIVE

To assess medical students' attachment profile and to explore its relationship with empathy dimensions.

METHODS

Three cohorts of medical students were consecutively enrolled in the study at the beginning of their second year, before their clinical internship experience, and assessed using the Attachment Style Questionnaire (a self-report measure of attachment styles) and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (a self-report measure of empathy). t-test, partial correlations, and multiple linear regression models were used to analyze relationships between attachment styles and gender, age, and empathy dimensions.

RESULTS

A total of 361 out of 450 (80.2%) Italian second-year medical students participated in the study. Female students considered interpersonal relationships more important and showed a higher need for approval than did their male counterparts. Among the attachment styles, considering relationships as secondary to achievement was the most important significant predictor of both emotional and cognitive empathy variables.

CONCLUSIONS

This study shows that the attachment styles of medical students are related to self-evaluated empathy, over and above the effects of gender and age differences.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The Attachment Style Questionnaire may be a useful tool for medical educators to identify medical students with low empathy scores during their pre-clinical years of study.

Attachment style and addictions (alcohol, cigarette, waterpipe and internet) among Lebanese adolescents: a national study

Background

The prevalence in the Lebanese general population of cigarette and waterpipe smoking, alcohol drinking and internet use seems to be increasing lately. So far, no study was done relating the above to attachment styles in Lebanese adolescents. Consequently, the objective of our study was to assess the relationship between attachment styles (secure, preoccupied, fearful, and dismissing) and addictions (cigarettes, water pipes, alcohol, and internet) among this population.

Methods

It is a cross-sectional study that took place between January and May 2019. Two thousand questionnaires were distributed out of which 1810 (90.5%) were completed and collected back. A proportionate random sample of schools from all Lebanese Mohafazat was used as recruitment method.

Results

A secure attachment style was significantly associated with lower addiction to alcohol, cigarette, and waterpipe, whereas insecure attachment styles (preoccupied, dismissing and fearful) were significantly associated with higher addiction to cigarette, waterpipe, alcohol, and internet.

Conclusion

Lebanese adolescents with insecure attachment had higher rates of addiction to cigarette, waterpipe, alcohol, and internet. They should be closely monitored in order to reduce the risk of future substance use disorder and/or behavioral addiction development.

Attachment Style and Insight in Schizophrenia: a Cross-Sectional Study

Attachment theory provides a model for understanding impairments in social and interpersonal functioning. Schizophrenia is a neuropsychiatry disorder frequently associated with compromised social functioning and limited social support networks. However, the relationship between attachment style and psychopathology dimensions, including insight, isn't fully understood To determine whether there is a relationship between the attachment style and markers for severity of schizophrenia and insight. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 41 patients with schizophrenia and 34 patients with non-psychotic disorders used as a control group. Patients were assessed using semi-structured diagnostic interviews and self-reporting questionnaires, including Adult Attachment Scale-Revised. The schizophrenia group was also given the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale and the Markova and Berrios Insight Scale. Insecure attachment was overrepresented in the schizophrenic group, and this difference was mainly accounted for lower levels of dependence, representing a moderate effect size (Cohen's d = 0.32). In the schizophrenia group, the closeness and the dependence subscale were negatively correlated with psychopathology severity. Using a multiple regression analysis, the insight was predicted by attachment anxiety, accounting for 20% of the total variance (R² = 0.199, p <0.05). Our data confirm previous evidence that insecure attachment is associated with schizophrenia and suggest that the less comfortable the patient is with closeness and intimacy the greater the severity of symptoms. Furthermore, our findings indicate that higher separation anxiety might predict a better insight.

Psychological factors of vulnerability to suicide ideation: Attachment styles, coping strategies, and dysfunctional attitudes

BACKGROUND

Suicide ideation is one of the common mental health problems among university students. This study aimed to explain suicide ideation susceptibility by examining the relationships between psychological factors.

METHODOLOGY

The population of the study included all female undergraduate students at the University of Isfahan in autumn 2018. A sample of 180 individuals were selected through multistage sampling from different faculties and majors. The scales used in this study included adults attachments inventory, Coping Inventory for Stressful Situation, Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale, and Suicide Ideation Scale. The statistical analyses included t-test, Pearson correlation, and path analysis.

RESULTS

Suicide ideation was reported in 25% of the participants. The t-test analysis indicated that the mean scores for dysfunctional attitudes (P < 0.01) and problem-focused coping (P < 0.01) were significantly different in with and without suicide ideation groups. Suicide ideation significantly correlated with problem-focused coping (r = -0.42, P < 0.01), emotion-focused coping (r = 0.25, P < 0.05), and dysfunctional attitudes (r = 0.23, P < 0.05). Path analysis showed that dysfunctional attitudes and emotion-focused coping significantly influenced suicide ideation. Moreover, the indirect effect of insecure (ambivalent and avoidant) attachment styles by mediating role of dysfunctional attitudes and emotion-focused coping was statistically significant (P < 0.01) and the indirect effect of dysfunctional attitudes by mediating role of emotion-focused coping as well (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Insecure attachment styles and dysfunctional attitudes work as stress-diathesis model in predicting suicide ideation and increase suicide ideation susceptibility by affecting emotion-focused coping strategy. The hypothesized model in this study can help formulate, evaluate, and prevent suicide risk.

The role of maternal attachment in mental health and dyadic relationships in war trauma

Background

Infant care is a demanding task in dangerous war conditions, but research on the wellbeing of mother-infant dyads is mainly available in peaceful conditions. Knowledge on protective versus risking processes is especially vital for tailoring effective help, and the present study proposes the maternal attachment style to play an important role in dangerous war conditions.

Objective

The study analyses, first, how various traumatic war events, such as losses, horrors and life-threat, are associated with maternal mental health and dyadic mother-infant interaction quality, indicated by maternal emotional availability (EA). Second, it tests a hypothesis that maternal insecure attachment risks and secure attachment protects good mental health and optimal EA from negative impacts of traumatic war events.

Method

The prospective three-wave study involved 502 Palestinian mothers, who were pregnant during the 2014 War on Gaza, and participated at delivery (T1), and when the infant was seven (T2; N = 392) and eighteen (T3; N = 386) months. Mothers reported about war events at T1 and T2 (death and losses, witnessing horrors and life-threat), and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression symptoms at T2 and T3. Dyadic interaction quality was assessed by mother-perceived emotional availability (EA) scale at T2 and T3, and attachment styles by mothers’ self-reports at T3.

Results

Death and losses, witnessing horrors, and life-threat were all associated with a high level of maternal PTSD, but only at T2, whereas death and losses were associated with her depressive symptoms both at T2 and T3. Witnessing horrors was associated with a low close and positive and a high distant and negative emotional availability at T2 and T3. As hypothesized, maternal avoidant attachment was associated with a low level of close and positive EA in general, and especially when the dyads were exposed to a high level of traumatic war events, thus indicating a risking function. Against the hypothesis, secure attachment did not show any protective function on emotional availability, while, unexpectedly, maternal preoccupied attachment was associated with close and positive emotional availability, when dyads were exposed to a high level of traumatic war events.

Conclusion

Mothering in conditions of war and military violence is an overwhelmingly demanding task, and mother-infant dyads need legal, social, and psychological assistance. Knowledge and reflection of unique responses and meanings of different attachment styles would be fruitful in tailoring effective help.

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.

Attachment styles and secure base priming in relation to emotional reactivity after frustration induction

In two experimental studies, we explored the role of attachment in predicting emotional reactivity after frustration induction. In the first study, using a cognitive frustration task, we examined in a college sample (N = 134) how attachment styles related to the experience and expression of emotions after frustration induction. In the second study, we investigated in college students (N = 198) the effect of conscious priming of the secure base schema on mood disturbance after the performance of a cognitive frustration task. Results showed that individuals experienced and expressed emotions after frustration induction independent of their attachment styles. Conscious priming of the secure base script attenuated self-reported emotional reactivity after frustration induction independent of individuals' attachment styles. These findings suggest that the mechanism of attachment-related emotional reactivity might not pertain to frustration during an unsolvable cognitive task, but that the activation of the sense of having a secure base is useful in reducing mood disturbance in the context of a frustrating performance task.

Increased attachment security is related to early therapy drop-out in substance use disorders

OBJECTIVES

Previous research work suggests a positive association between secure attachment and increased therapy adherence (TA) in different patient groups. However, there is still a strong need for research focusing on the influence of attachment on TA in substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. Hence, this study attempts to investigate the predictive value of different attachment patterns concerning TA in SUD inpatients.

RESULTS

122 (34 female) SUD inpatients completed the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) during the entry phase of therapeutic community treatment. After 6 weeks, subjects who remained in therapy (n = 47) completed the ASQ for a second time. In line with the literature, agglomerative Cluster Analysis suggested a two-cluster solution (Cluster I: increased secure attachment pattern; Cluster II: increased insecure attachment pattern). Notably, inpatients in Cluster I were more likely to drop out of treatment within the first 6 weeks (p < .001). Furthermore, subjects showed less "Confidence in Self and Others" (p < .05) after 6 weeks of treatment. Our findings indicate a negative predictive value of increased attachment security for TA in SUD inpatients. This finding probably mirrors a more realistic kind of self-assessment. More generally, the importance of considering attachment styles in SUD treatment is underlined.

Parental psychopathology, adult attachment and risk of 12-month suicidal behaviours

BACKGROUND

The mechanisms by which parental psychopathology and vulnerability to suicide is transmitted to offspring is not well understood. parental psychopathology and behaviour may impact upon the normal emotional and psychological adjustment of their offspring in various ways. Research shows attachment insecurities may also be a key factor in the facilitation of suicidal behaviours.

OBJECTIVE

To examine adult attachment insecurities as a potential mediating pathway between parental psychopathology and 12-month suicidality.

METHOD

The study utilized data from the National co-morbidity Survey-Replication (NCS-R, N = 5692). Parental psychopathology was assessed using items from the Familial History of Psychiatric Disorders section of the NSC-R in conjunction with items designed to capture dimensions of attachment and suicidal behaviours.

RESULTS

Resultant analyses demonstrated specificity effects in that, parental psychopathology was associated with specific suicidal components through specific dimensions of attachment.

DISCUSSION

The results align with literature linking parental psychopathology to both attachment insecurities and risk of suicide. Crucially, this study bridges these research areas by presenting attachment insecurity as possible risk indicator and intervening factor between parental mental health and behaviour and specific indicators of suicide.

Differentiating Between Attachment Styles and Behaviors and their Association with Marital Quality

The purpose of this study was to distinguish between the influence of attachment styles and behaviors on marital quality for couples. Data were gathered from 680 couples in a married relationship. Results showed attachment style and behaviors predicted marital quality for both men and women, with higher levels of attachment related to greater quality. Attachment behaviors predicted more of the variance in quality than did styles. Specific implications regarding how therapists may wish to foster behaviors that promote attachment security in marriages are discussed.

Exploring Individual Differences in Online Addictions: the Role of Identity and Attachment

Research examining the development of online addictions has grown greatly over the last decade with many studies suggesting both risk factors and protective factors. In an attempt to integrate the theories of attachment and identity formation, the present study investigated the extent to which identity styles and attachment orientations account for three types of online addiction (i.e., internet addiction, online gaming addiction, and social media addiction). The sample comprised 712 Italian students (381 males and 331 females) recruited from schools and universities who completed an offline self-report questionnaire. The findings showed that addictions to the internet, online gaming, and social media were interrelated and were predicted by common underlying risk and protective factors. Among identity styles, 'informational' and 'diffuse-avoidant' styles were risk factors, whereas 'normative' style was a protective factor. Among attachment dimensions, the 'secure' attachment orientation negatively predicted the three online addictions, and a different pattern of causal relationships were observed between the styles underlying 'anxious' and 'avoidant' attachment orientations. Hierarchical multiple regressions demonstrated that identity styles explained between 21.2 and 30% of the variance in online addictions, whereas attachment styles incrementally explained between 9.2 and 14% of the variance in the scores on the three addiction scales. These findings highlight the important role played by identity formation in the development of online addictions.

Attachment style moderates theory of mind abilities in depression

INTRODUCTION

Being able to understand other people's emotions and intentions is crucial for social interactions and well-being. Deficits in theory of mind (ToM) functioning hamper this ability and have been observed in depression and other neuropsychiatric disorders. However, results of previous research in depression have been inconclusive, possibly due to the presence of comorbid disorders and the disregarding of other modulating factors.

METHODS

Thirty-eight patients with a major depressive disorder (MDD) and forty healthy matched controls were assessed with a ToM task using animated triangles. Results were correlated with attachment styles, empathy abilities and neurocognitive performance.

RESULTS

Our findings show that 1) healthy female controls performed significantly stronger on the ToM task than female MDD patients, 2) these performance differences were driven by attachment styles and 3) depression severity did not impact task performance.

LIMITATIONS

The pharmacological treatment of the majority of patients might limit the generalizability of this study.

DISCUSSION

Results indicate a gender-specific impact of attachment styles on ToM performance. Future studies should investigate whether impairments in social cognitive tasks pose a risk factor for depression and/or interactional styles or vice versa. Moreover, with regard to remediation programs gender-specific needs should be taken into account.

Relationship between attachment styles and happiness in medical students

Background:

Attachment theory is one of the most important achievements of contemporary psychology. Role of medical students in the community health is important, so we need to know about the situation of happiness and attachment style in these students.

Objectives:

This study was aimed to assess the relationship between medical students’ attachment styles and demographic characteristics.

Materials and Methods:

This cross-sectional study was conducted on randomly selected students of Medical Sciences in Kurdistan University, in 2012. To collect data, Hazan and Shaver's attachment style measure and the Oxford Happiness Questionnaire were used. The results were analyzed using the SPSS software version 16 (IBM, Chicago IL, USA) and statistical analysis was performed via t-test, Chi-square test, and multiple regression tests.

Results:

Secure attachment style was the most common attachment style and the least common was ambivalent attachment style. Avoidant attachment style was more common among single persons than married people (P = 0.03). No significant relationship was observed between attachment style and gender and grade point average of the studied people. The mean happiness score of students was 62.71. In multivariate analysis, the variables of secure attachment style (P = 0.001), male gender (P = 0.005), and scholar achievement (P = 0.047) were associated with higher happiness score.

Conclusion:

The most common attachment style was secure attachment style, which can be a positive prognostic factor in medical students, helping them to manage stress. Higher frequency of avoidant attachment style among single persons, compared with married people, is mainly due to their negative attitude toward others and failure to establish and maintain relationships with others.

The psychometric properties of the Persian version of Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure

BACKGROUND

Investigating the psychometric properties of existing psychometric scales in societies with differing dynamics can help with their external validity. This research specifically aimed at standardization and validation of Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (IPSM) scale in Iran.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Persian version of the IPSM was produced through forward translation, reconciliation, and back translation. A total of 357, nonclinical students were selected through multistage sampling method and completed a set of questionnaires including IPSM. Internal consistency, convergent validity, divergent validity, and test-retest reliability of the Persian version of the IPSM were analyzed. To assess the construct validity, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed.

RESULTS

Total IPSM, as well as all subscales showed satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach's α =0.86 and 0.51-0.71, respectively). Test-retest reliability at a 2-week interval was significant, with intraclass correlation coefficient ranging between 0.73 and 0.92. In terms of convergent validity, IPSM showed the significant positive correlation with self-report measures of depression, social anxiety, and anxious attachment style. IPSM showed negative correlation with Social Desirability Scale and secure (C subscale of avoidant attachment style [AAS]) and dependent (D subscale of AAS), thus demonstrated divergent validity with these constructs. According to the CFA, the responses of the sample in this study were fitted to the original five-factor structure.

CONCLUSION

The IPSM showed good validity and reliability and could be useful in assessing interpersonal sensitivity in Iranian population.

The Role of Depression and Attachment Styles in Predicting Students' Addiction to Cell Phones

BACKGROUND

The present study aimed at investigating the role of depression and attachment styles in predicting cell phone addiction.

METHODS

In this descriptive correlational study, a sample including 100 students of Payame Noor University (PNU), Reyneh Center, Iran, in the academic year of 2013-2014 was selected using volunteer sampling. Participants were asked to complete the adult attachment inventory (AAI), Beck depression inventory-13 (BDI-13) and the cell phone overuse scale (COS).

FINDINGS

Results of the stepwise multiple regression analysis showed that depression and avoidant attachment style were the best predictors of students' cell phone addiction (R(2) = 0.23).

CONCLUSION

The results of this study highlighted the predictive value of depression and avoidant attachment style concerning students' cell phone addiction.

Attachment styles and symptoms in individuals with psychosis

BACKGROUND

The capacity to manage affects is rooted in early interactions with caregivers, which in adulthood are internalized as different attachment styles. Few studies have explored associations between all four attachment styles and symptoms.

AIM

Our aim was to investigate the relations between the four attachment styles and psychological distress in a group of people with psychosis.

METHOD

In a cross-sectional study, associations between self-reported attachment style and symptoms in a psychosis group were explored. Attachment styles were measured with the Relationship Questionnaire (RQ) and symptoms were assessed with the revised version of the Symptom Checklist (SCL-90R) RESULTS: The analyses showed a significant positive association between preoccupied attachment and the severity of symptoms. Furthermore, the analyses indicated significant positive associations between preoccupied attachment and the subscales measuring depression, anxiety, interpersonal sensitivity, paranoia and psychoticism. We also found significant positive associations between fearful attachment and both interpersonal sensitivity and psychoticism.

CONCLUSION

The associations between attachment styles and symptoms found here are consistent with those of previous studies. It could be important for clinicians to identify patients' attachment styles. Such knowledge would help mental health professionals to understand better the patients' capacity to handle distress and help professionals to address interventions aiming to target each patient's specific needs.

Comparing the Early Maladaptive Schemas, Attachment and Coping Styles in Opium and Stimulant Drugs Dependent Men in Kerman, Iran

BACKGROUND

Today, the society's need to find the roots of a few thousand-year old substance abuse and the drugs addiction crisis has increased to the extent that it has become a problem within our country. The problem of substance dependence is not only about drug abuse, but it is actually the interrelationship of the person and the dependency on drugs. This study aimed to compare early maladaptive schemas, attachment styles, and coping styles in men dependent on opiates and stimulants in Kerman, Iran.

METHODS

This was a comparative descriptive study. The study population consisted of men dependent on opiates and stimulants who referred to addiction treatment clinics in Kerman. Therefore, 150 patients (75 opium addicted men and 75 men dependent on drugs) were selected. The participants completed the Young schema questionnaire-short form (YSQ-SF), adult attachment scale (AAS), and Young coping styles questionnaire (YCSQ). The research data were analyzed using independent t-test and SPSS software.

FINDINGS

Mean age of patients using opium was 27.9 ± 3.35 years and mean age of patients using stimulant drugs was 25.6 ± 3.41 years (18-60 years old). The results showed that there was no difference between the early maladaptive schemas and coping styles in men dependent on opium and stimulants. However, there was a significant difference between attachment styles in men dependent on opium and stimulants. The mean score of avoidant and ambivalent styles in men dependent on stimulants was higher.

CONCLUSION

Knowledge on the distinctions of early maladaptive schemas, attachment styles, and coping styles in substance abuse patients helps the therapists to conduct more effective treatment strategies tailored to the type of substance used in order to provide behavior modification.

Fearful attachment mediates the association of childhood trauma with schizotypy and psychotic-like experiences

We examined whether insecure attachment styles mediate the association between childhood trauma and nonclinical psychotic phenomena in 546 young adults. Fearful attachment mediated the associations of physical/emotional trauma with schizotypy, suspiciousness, and psychotic-like experiences. Results support theoretical accounts implicating attachment disruptions in the pathway from childhood adversity to psychosis.

Attachment and alcohol use amongst athletes: the mediating role of conscientiousness and alexithymia

OBJECTIVE

The present study aims to explore the mediating effects of conscientiousness and alexithymia in the relationship between parental attachment style and alcohol use in a large sample of athletic young people.

METHOD

Participants included 434 French sport sciences students. Alcohol use, parental attachment style, conscientiousness and alexithymia were assessed. The hypotheses were tested by using regression and bootstrapping mediation analyses.

RESULTS

Maternal insecure attachment style is positively associated with alcohol use. The current study highlights a multiple pathway in this relationship. The results reveal the mediating effect of low conscientiousness and alexithymia between maternal insecure attachment and alcohol use.

CONCLUSION

Athletes' alcohol use seems to be the result of a complex association of underlying psychological factors.

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 32 years (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 .6 mg/mL plus sufentanil .5 μg/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.

PERSPECTIVE

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.

Association between attachment prototypes and schizotypy dimensions in two independent non-clinical samples of Spanish and American young adults

Attachment theory offers a powerful theoretical framework for elucidating the developmental pathway through which childhood interpersonal trauma confers vulnerability to psychosis. In the present study, the association between attachment and schizotypy was explored in two independent non-clinical samples of Spanish (n=547) and American (n=1425) young adults. Participants completed the Relationship Questionnaire and the Wisconsin Schizotypy Scales. Following attachment theory and cognitive accounts of psychosis, it was hypothesized that preoccupied attachment would be associated with positive schizotypy, dismissing attachment with negative schizotypy, and fearful attachment with both schizotypy dimensions. Results confirmed these predictions, thus supporting the theoretical frameworks invoked. Also, the associations found in these non-clinical samples are consistent with those in clinical psychosis, supporting the continuum model of schizotypy and schizophrenia. Finally, there was cross-cultural consistency of these associations. Overall, the findings support the application of attachment theory for furthering our understanding of whether different insecure styles, characterized by different self and other representations and affect regulation strategies, play a role in the pathways to positive and negative symptoms.

Attachment styles as predictors of empathy in nursing students

Previous studies have traced a relationship between the attachment styles of nurses working as in healthcare teams and their empathy which is an essential characteristic required of people concerned with managing relationships, supporting social events, and improving the of nurse-patient relationships. Since determining the effective variables in the quality of nurse-patient relationships in clinical settings is of paramount importance, current investigation is an effort to examine the relationship between attachment styles and empathy in nursing students. 260 university students (male = 130 and female = 130) were chosen as the sample of the study based upon specific inclusion criteria. All participants completed the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) and the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). Data was collected and analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficient and regression analysis with SPSS (v.18). The results showed that secure and insecure attachment styles have significant positive and negative correlation with empathy respectively. Based on the results of regression analysis, it was shown that secure attachment style is predicting 53% of the variance empathy variable, whereas insecure attachment styles are explaining up to 76% of the variance empathy variable collectively. The increase of attention to instructions that focus on empathetic relationships with patients and that are based upon the secure attachment style can result in positive changes in the area of nurse-patient relations and in increasing attention to medical ethics. Findings are consistent with prediction derived from attachment theory and add to our understanding of relationship between attachment styles with empathy in nursing students. The meaning and limitations of this study and suggestions for further research are also discussed.