Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Relationship Between Early Attachment And Marital Satisfaction In Early Adulthood, Seyed Hadi Hosseini Yassin

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between early attachment and marital satisfaction. Whereas partner attachment has been found to be related to marital satisfaction, little research has examined the relationship of early attachment to marital satisfaction. It was hypothesized that early attachment would impact the three components of marital satisfaction, i.e., communication, sexual satisfaction, and love/partner attachment in early adulthood. Participants were 35 male and 119 female college students ages 18 to 40 years (M = 27 yrs), who completed a questionnaire comprised of Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) (Spanier, 1976), the sexual satisfaction subscale from the …

The Relationship Of Adaptive And Pathological Narcissism To Attachment Style And Reflective Functioning, Petra Vospernik

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This study examined the relationship of adaptive and pathological (grandiose and vulnerable) expressions of narcissism to attachment style and the capacity for reflective functioning (RF). Narcissism serves a relevant personality construct in clinical theory, social psychology and psychiatry but remains inconsistently defined across these disciplines. Theoretical accounts support the notion that attachment difficulties and maladaptive patterns of mentally representing self and others serve as the substrates for narcissistic pathology but are less pronounced in adaptive narcissism. A multiple regression analysis was conducted in a college student sample of 345 participants applying a cross-sectional, survey design. It was hypothesized that pathological …

The Impact Of Technology On Adolescent Identity Development, Christina Frederick, Amy Bradshaw Hoppock, Devin Liskey, Daniel Brown

Publications

This paper explores how technology use in adolescence facilitates adult identity achievement and presents evidence that technological objects, such as smartphones have become adolescent transitional objects. Early and late adolescents were surveyed about technology use and feelings associated with technology. Among older adolescents, anxiety level was related to smart phone use, such that higher anxiety was associated with greater smart phone use. The feelings and behaviors associated with use of the preferred device are consistent with feelings and behaviors associated with use of a transitional object. In contrast, younger adolescents did not appear to use technology as a transitional object. …

The Link Between Insecure Attachment And Depression: Two Potential Pathways, Cassandra C. Devito

Masters Theses

A wealth of research demonstrates a strong link between insecure attachment and depressive symptoms. However, thus far no work has discerned different pathways to depression for each of the insecure subtypes: anxious and avoidant attachment. This work looks at the behaviors that couples engage in during a conflict interaction as a potential mediator for the attachment-depression relationship, with different behaviors mediating the link between anxious and avoidant attachment and depression. For anxiously attached individuals, it was predicted that lack of support and response from the partner (actual or perceived) would account for the relationship between their attachment and depressive symptoms. …

The Effect Of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy On Strengthening The Attachment Relationship With Foster Parents And Children In Foster Care, Christina Marie Danko

College of Science and Health Theses and Dissertations

Children in foster care are more likely to face difficulties in forming a secure attachment relationship and to have problem behaviors than children not in foster care (Dozier & Rutter, 2008). Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) is an evidence-based treatment that focuses on strengthening the attachment relationship between the child and the caregiver, as well as reducing the number and intensity of behavior problems. Although PCIT is based on attachment theory, very few studies have examined the effect of PCIT on child-parent attachment or examined the effect of PCIT on attachment in foster care families. This study extends prior work and …

Attachment And Attention: An Investigation Of Biases In Attention As They Relate To Attachment Security In Infancy And Adulthood, Paul J. Meinz

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

At the advent of attachment theory, John Bowlby hypothesized that cognition and emotion are shaped by early experiences with primary caregivers (Bowlby, 1980). This idea – that aspects of cognition may be organized within early relationships – still plays a prominent role in contemporary attachment theory. The studies described within this dissertation provide support for the idea that attachment security in infancy and adulthood are associated with differences in cognition – particularly with differences in the way that people attend to certain forms of stimuli. Mothers and children in the studies described here were first assessed for individual differences in …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Attachment Style And Body Image In Adolescent Girls: A Focus On The Mother-Daughter Relationship, Jaclyn Bex

Dissertations - ALL

Using Bowlby's attachment theory and a family systems perspective, this study explored the relationships between attachment between mother and daughters, daughter's body image, and the daughter's perception of what her mother thinks of her body. It was hypothesized that secure attachment would correlate with satisfied body image in the daughters and the belief that their mother's had a satisfied image of the daughter's body. Participants were female undergraduate students recruited from a private university. Participants completed self-report questionnaires about attachment (Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment, IPPA), body image (Contour Drawing Rating Scale, CDRS), and a researcher created demographic questionnaire. …

Unfinished Business In Bereavement: A Mixed Methods Study, Kara Lee Klingspon

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Unfinished business(incomplete, unexpressed or unresolved relationship issues with the deceased) is frequently discussed as a risk factor for chronic and severe grief reactions. However, few empirical studies have examined this construct. The present study aimed to address this gap in the literature by examining the presence and severity of unfinished business as well as common themes of unfinished business reported in open-ended qualitative narratives among a sample of 256 bereaved individuals. In bivariate analyses, self-reported presence of unfinished business and the severity of distress due to unfinished business were both found to be associated with higher levels of distress and …

The Importance Of Access To Benefits Under The Family Medical Leave Act For Low-Income Families For Bonding And Attachment Facilitation With A Fragile Infant And The Role Of The Social Worker, Theresa Stewart Moran

21st Century Social Justice

Lack of universal family leave discriminates against low-income families with infants who require care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Birth complications tend to occur more frequently in families living with low socioeconomic status, placing a disproportionate burden on an already vulnerable population. Parents in this group tend to be employed in jobs that do not include the benefit of parental leave. Considering that attachment relationships form as the result of bonding transactions during a critical time in development, limiting contact curtails secure attachment. This, combined with other risk factors, increase the odds of lifelong negative outcomes. Family leave policy …

Attachment Changes Post-Conversion In Committed Converts Tothe Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints, Laura Jane Page

Theses and Dissertations

Religious conversion has been described as a “spiritual transformation” where converts experience an “intimate ‘union’ . . . [with] divine presence” (Sandage & Shults, 2007). To better understand motivators of conversion, several studies have examined how attachment patterns affect the likelihood, and speed of religious conversion (e.g., Granqvist & Hagekull, 1999; Granqvist & Kirkpatrick, 2004; Kirkpatrck, 1998; Kirkpatrick & Shaver, 1990; Schnitker, Porter, Emmons, & Barrett, 2012). Converts' changes in personality, self-definition, and meaningfulness following conversion have been noted (Halama and Lačná, 2011; Paloutzian, Richardson, & Rambo, 1999). However, little, if any research has been conducted examining changes in attachment …

Testing A Model Of Maladaptive Perfectionism And Depression Symptoms: The Roles Of Emotional Disclosure, Emotion Regulation Strategies, Adult Attachment, And Shame, Angela M. Garrison

Dissertations

Previous research has supported a link between maladaptive perfectionism and higher levels of depression symptoms. However, researchers have not yet investigated the ways in which emotion regulation processes may mediate this relationship. Therefore, the primary purpose of this study was to evaluate emotional disclosure, emotional avoidance, and rumination as mediators of the relation between maladaptive perfectionism and depression symptoms. Additionally, this study also investigated the role that insecure attachment orientations play in the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and use of particular emotion regulation strategies. Further, the role of shame in the emotion regulation processes of individuals with higher levels of …

Investigating The Relationship Between Reckless Behaviours, Gender, Psychological Mindedness, And Attachment Security, Aileen M. Pidgeon, Lucas Ford

Aileen M. Pidgeon

Reckless behaviours, such as reckless driving, sexual behaviours and drug use, are major lifestyle contributors to morbidity and mortality for young adults. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the relationship between reckless behaviours, gender, attachment security and psychological mindedness. Data was collected from university students (n = 101) aged between 18 to 30 years old (M = 21) and analysed using multivariate analysis of covariance. Gender was found to be a significant predictor of reckless behaviour (p = .004), with males reporting significantly higher levels. Participants reporting high levels of attachment security did not report significantly different …

Emotion Focused Therapy For Couples In Addiction Treatment: The Relationship Between Quality Of Recovery, Attachment Style, And Relational Satisfaction, Bonnie Bassett

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigates the efficacy of Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT) for couples in an addiction recovery program. The literature review revealed that individuals with a secure attachment style experience increased relational satisfaction and report better ability to manage life's challenges as compared with individuals with an insecure attachment style. A pretest-posttest design was used to investigate the effect of EFT on quality of recovery from addiction. The primary measure's percentile rank scores were comparatively analyzed. A single case multiple baseline design was implemented to draw inferences based on examining the participants' assessment scores across baseline and intervention phases. The purpose …

The 4d-Model Of Trauma-Related Dissociation: Validating A Novel Theoretical Framework Through An Attachment-Oriented Approach, Matthew F D Brown

Undergraduate Honors Theses

A recent framework known as the 4D-Model of Trauma-related Dissociation (Frewen & Lanius, 2014) differentiates between symptoms of clinically significant distress based on whether the symptoms do or do not intrinsically exemplify trauma-related altered states of consciousness (TRASC). Undergraduate students (n = 342) participated in an online survey and completed several measures assessing childhood experiences and psychological symptoms. Female PTSD patients (n = 25) completed similar measures before entering treatment. Within the student sample, NWC symptoms were endorsed as occurring more frequently than TRASC symptoms. On average, symptoms of NWC were more strongly intercorrelated than symptoms of TRASC. …

The Effects Of Literature On Childhood Anxiety And Attachment Issues, Samantha Taylor

Honors College

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether children’s literature that targets issues related to anxiety and attachment has any effect on preschoolers, specifically at the beginning of a new school year. A sample of 12 children aged 2 to 4 years who attended a university-based preschool was examined with two parental and teacher questionnaires that assessed childhood anxiety and attachment-related issues. These measures were administered before and after the treatment. The participants were split into three groups: control, reading, and reading with discussion, and then were read two books that focused on the theme of coping with …

Growing Ideas - Shocking Language! - Swearing, University Of Maine Center For Community Inclusion And Disability Studies

Early Childhood Resources

When children swear, it is important to understand the hidden meaning behind those troubling words. As with any behavior, it is important to learn as much as you can about a child and what may be causing this swearing behavior. Young children usually do not know what the swear words mean, so what is the swearing behavior communicating? Is a child saying..."I am angry!" "This word makes people pay attention!" "I want to be like my favorite TV character!" "I need a friend!" or " I feel sick or hurt."

Identifying And Understanding Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Among College Students, Angela S. Fedewa

Wayne State University Dissertations

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) behavior in college students

at an urban university was studied. Relations between NSSI

and poor quality relationships with their parents and peers, as

well as deficient coping and help-seeking behavior were examined

from an attachment perspective. Undergraduates were recruited

via an online psychology subject pool and completed an online survey.

T-tests were conducted to identify what variables differed between

students who engaged in NSSI in contrast to students that did not.

In addition, a discriminant function analysis was conducted. It was

found that intrapersonal and interpersonal variables predicted group

membership (i.e. social desirability, body protection, positive affect, …

Babies Aren’T Persons:” A Survey Of Delayed Personhood., David F. Lancy

David Lancy

To better understand attachment from a cross-cultural and historical perspective, I have amassed over 200 cases from the ethnographic and archaeological records that reveal cultural models (D'Andrade and Strauss 1992) of infancy. The 200 cases represent all areas of the world, historical epochs from the Mesolithic to the present and all types of subsistence patterns (Appendix 1). The approach is inductive where cases with similar models of infancy are clustered into archetypes. My principal finding from this analysis is that, in the broadest overview, infants are, effectively, placed on probation and not immediately integrated into the society. Attachment failure is …

The Relationship Between Childhood Attachment Style And Adult Dissociation, Laura Michelle Swiney

ETD Archive

The relationship between attachment style and dissociation was examined in this study. A total of 36 undergraduate students were administered self-report questionnaires that revealed their attachment style, and then underwent two tasks (dot-staring and mirror-staring) to evoke acute dissociative symptoms. In a repeated-measures design, it was found that individuals with insecure attachment experienced a significant increase in dissociation following both of the tasks than did those who were securely attached. Additionally, this increase was significantly greater for those participants who reported higher everyday dissociation

Security Of Attachment To Spouses In Late Life: Concurrent And Prospective Links With Cognitive And Emotional Wellbeing, Robert J. Waldinger, Shiri Cohen, Marc S. Schulz, Judith A. Crowell

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Social ties are powerful predictors of late-life health and well-being. Although many adults maintain intimate partnerships into late life, little is known about mental models of attachment to spouses and how they influence aging. A total of 81 elderly heterosexual couples (162 individuals) were interviewed to examine the structure of attachment security to their partners; respondents also completed measures of cognition and well-being concurrently and 2.5 years later. Factor analysis revealed a single factor for security of attachment. Higher security was linked concurrently with greater marital satisfaction, fewer depressive symptoms, better mood, and less frequent marital conflicts. Greater security predicted …

University Commitment: Test Of A Three-Component Model, Brittany Davis

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

University commitment is critical to university success, as it positively impacts retention, as well as many other student attitudes and behaviors (Beil, Reisen, Zea, & Caplan, 1999; Tinto, 1987; Tinto, 2006; Woosley & Miller, 2009). Therefore, psychometrically sound measures of university commitment are of great importance to universities. The present study seeks to test the psychometric properties of a newly developed scale of university commitment. This study measured the internal consistency reliability, content validity, and construct validity of the newly created measure. Divergent validity was evaluated by comparing the new measure to the Perceived Academic Achievement Scale (Meagher, 2012) and …

Adult Attachment And Emotion Identification: A Cognitive Evaluation, Jennifer F. Barron

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Whether adult or infant, attachment bonds aid in the development of beliefs about oneself and others (Collins & Read, 1990; Hazen & Shaver, 1987). Additionally, attachment seems to play a vital role in human development, communication, emotion recognition and comprehension, and the development of appropriate mental representations of emotional experiences (Denham et al., 2002; Greg & Howe, 2001; Raikes & Thompson, 2006). Because attachment is considered a somewhat stable trait, it seems logical that the importance of emotional experiences would not be limited to childhood, and would be important in establishing and maintaining healthy adult relationships (Kerr, Melley, Travea, & …