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Counselors seek to conceptualize clients who come in with complex problems in order to help them improve their lives and facilitate improved problem solving skills. In order to do this the counselor must understand how the different aspects of an individual’s personality work together with their environment to make the individual who they are. Styles of attachment have proven to be central to the formation of a person’s personality. Ideas of attachment in infants and children were established in the 1960’s by Bowlby, and were later built upon by the ideas of researchers like Ainsworth and Thompson. Through this research bases of attachment, styles of attachment, and the outcomes of attachments in children have been documented and well understood. Somewhat less understood, however, are how the attachment one forms as a child then translates into their adult life and attachments. This work seeks to explore research on adult attachment, including the difference in childhood patterns of attachment and adult patterns, worldwide trends, stability throughout the life course, and adult issues associated with maladaptive patterns of attachment, while relating this research back to the counseling profession at large.
Childhood Patterns vs. Adult Patterns
Mary Ainsworth established four patterns of attachment through her qualitative research with children on the topic; the patterns are secure, anxious resistant, anxious-avoidant, and disorganized (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978). The style disorganized was added in through later research, and is not always utilized in research, as it is considered a combination of more than one style. The model of adult attachment styles takes information gleaned from the work of Bowlby and combine...
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...erry, E., & Chailman, R. (2013). Probing the relationship between selfobject needs and adult attachment orientations. Psychoanalytic Psychology, 30(2), 247-263.
Ponizovsky, A. M., Levov, K., Schultz, Y., & Radomislensky, I. (2011). Attachment insecurity and psychological resources associated with adjustment disorders. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 81(2), 265-276. van Ijzendoorn, M. H., & Sagi-Schwartz, A. (2008). Cross-cultural patterns of attachment: Universal and contextual dimensions. In J. Cassidy, & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Theory, research, and clinical applications (pp. 880-905). New York: Guilford Press.
Wei, M., Russell, D. W., Mallinckrodt, B., & Zakalik, R. A. (2004). Cultural equivilence of adult attachment across four ethnic groups: Factor structure, structured means, and associations with negative mood. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 51, 408-417.
The attachment theory helps to examine who we form relationships with, why these relationships work or fail, and how the relationships help to develop us in adolescence and on to adulthood. Mary Ainsworth stated a child/infant needed a secure base from where they could explore the world (Bretheron, 1992). Ainsworth stated a secure base is an emotional rich environment (1963). She also formulated the ideal of maternal instincts allow the mother to meet the infants need and with that ability, the infant-mother attachment is solidified. Ainsworth methodology made it possible to test and empirically prove attachment theory (Bretheron, 1992). The attachment theory highlights the importance of a secure base, infants and young
The first topic that came up in the interview relates to idea of attachment theory. Attachment theory explains the human’s way of relating to a caregiver and receives an attachment figures relating to the parent, and children. In addition, the concept explains the confidence and ability for a child to free explore their environment with a place to seek support, protection, and comfort in times of distress (Levy, Ellison, Scott, and Bernecker, 2010, p. 193). Within attachment theory explains different types of attachment styles that children experience during early childhood. These attachment styles affect the relationships they continue to build in adulthood. The best attachment style happens when the parent is attuned to the child during his or her early childhood called secure attachment (Reyes, 2010, p. 174). In order for complete secure attachment, the child needs to feel safe, seen, and soothed. Any relationship that deviates from this model represents the anxious or insecure attachment. This means that parents or caregivers are inconsistently responsive to the children. Children who have these parents are usually confused and insecure. Some children experience a dismissive attachment where they
...s one with the knowledge necessary to incorporate methods for evoking change and empathize. It becomes easier to understand how certain maladaptive behaviors are developed as certain characteristics are learned patterns and not solely based on one’s personality. There are very many areas of attachment that need to be studied. As the population of minorities, working mothers, single parent homes, and children in the foster care system rise the ability to assess their ability to attach as well as develop new attachments is crucial. The works by Bowlby, Ainsworth, and Main have provided me with new interest in the attachment styles of children to their caregivers. It has allowed me to adjust the way in which I interact with my own daughter and other children in my presence to help establish new and beneficial adult attachments so that they can grow and feel empowered.
Admittedly, many psychologists define attachment as an enduring, affectionate bond that one person forms between himself and another person throughout life. Mary Ainsworth provided the most famous research: strange situation, offering explanations of individual differences in attachment. However, in this Adult Attachment Style questionnaire that I took, I found many factors relevant to attachment as defined in the textbook. For example, in the textbook, it defines attachment based on Ainsworth research, the strange situation by observing attachment forms between mother and infants. They are described in four attachment styles: securely attached, insecure avoidant, insecure resistant, and insecure disorganized.
It has been proposed that infant attachment styles do not change after the first year of life, the following essay will argue against this prompt in that ones attachment style will change continuously throughout life. Attachment theory is based on the joint work of Bowlby and Ainsworth (Bretherton, 1992). In recent years the idea of ‘attachment’ has become and increasingly popular debate within developmental psychology (Bretherton, 1992). Attachment theory provides an explanation on how parent and child relationships are formed and the important role they play in child development. However majority of the research into attachment has focused on identifying the stability of attachment rather then identifying the possible insatiability of
Acknowledging, the importance of attachment has been in helpful development of couples therapy, in particular to Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFT), “where it helps explain how even healthy adults need to depend on each other,” (Nichols, 2013, p. 62). EFT is an empirically validated experiential therapy model that works with emotion to create change. EFT therapists use “attachment theory to deconstruct the familiar dynamic in which one partner criticizes and complains while the other gets defensive and withdraws,” (Nichols, 2013, p.63). Research has demonstrated the importance of attachment in individuals. It is not solely a childhood trait attachment is a trait that individuals carry for the rest of their lives. Nonetheless, it is important to work on the attachments with families and couples in order to alleviate some of the negative interactions that arise from feeling a fear of losing the attachment with
John Bowlby’s attachment theory established that an infant’s earliest relationship with their primary caregiver or mother shaped their later development and characterized their human life, “from the cradle to the grave” (Bowlby, 1979, p. 129). The attachment style that an infant develops with their parent later reflects on their self-esteem, well-being and the romantic relationships that they form. Bowlby’s attachment theory had extensive research done by Mary Ainsworth, who studied the mother-infant interactions specifically regarding the theme of an infant’s exploration of their surrounding and the separation from their mother in an experiment called the strange situation. Ainsworth defined the four attachment styles: secure, insecure/resistant, insecure/avoidant and disorganized/disoriented, later leading to research studies done to observe this behavior and how it affects a child in their adolescence and adulthood.
Cassidy, J., & Shaver, P.R. (1999). Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications. New York: The Guilford Press.
Hazan, C., Gur-Yaish, N., & Campa, M. (2003). What does it mean to be attached? In W. S. Rholes & J. A. Simpson (Eds.) Adult Attachment: Theory, Research, and Clinical Implications, (pp. 55 – 85). New York: Guilford.
Psychologist, Mary Ainsworth expanded upon Bowlby's original work. She conducted a study labelled the ‘Strange Situation’. In the study, based upon the children’s reactions, Ainsworth described three major styles of attachment: secure attachment, ambivalent-insecure attachment, and avoidant-insecure attachment. Work by Stroufe and Waters in 1977, further supported Ainsworth's attachment styles and have indicated that attachment styles also have an impact on behaviours later in life (Birns, 1999, p. 13). Researchers have found strengths in attachment patterns established early in life can lead to a number of outcomes. For example, children who are securely attached as infants tend to develop stronger self-esteem and better self-reliance as they grow older. These children also tend to be more independent, perform better in school, have successful social relationships, and experience less depression and anxiety (Birns, 1999, p. 13).
Attachment has also proven useful in understanding the emotional experience of older adults (Magai, Consedine, Gillespie, O’Neal, & Vilker, 2004). For example, Magai & Passman (1997) discovered a strong relationship between secure attachments and emotional well-being of middle aged adults, which extends to individuals later in life. Understanding the role of attachment and its psychosocial impact during later life is an important area that needs further
Brenning, K.M. & Braet, C. (2013). The emotion regulation model of attachment: An emotion-specific approach. Personal Relationships, 20(1), 107-123. Doi: 10.1111/j.1475-6811.2012.01399.x
There is much debate surrounding the subject of infant attachment styles and the resounding effect they have on adult relationships. Attachment theory highlights the influence of early experience on shaping children’s conceptualization of responsiveness and trustworthiness of a significant other (Frayley, Roisman Booth-LaForce, Owen & Holland, 2013). The theory also suggests that an individual that is cared for consistently and responsively will assume that others will be supportive and available when necessary (Ainsworth Blehar, Waters & Wall, 1978). This assumption is influential of the way individuals control attachment behaviour and can consequently effect social development and interpersonal relations (Frayley et al., 2013). A prevalent
In addition, they tend to enjoy sexuality in the context of a commixed relationship and are less likely to have one-night stands. While avoidant individuals are hesitant about getting involved in romantic relationships and once in a relationship to distance themselves from their partner. Contrary, individuals who have anxious attachment demand closeness, are less trusting and are more emotional, jealous and possessive. Based on this, each attachment is linked to how the individual’s relationship pattern is like since they develop different patterns depending on the attachment stile they have. However, attachment in older adults differ from attachment of young adults since older adults have fewer attachment relationships than younger adults. Also, the more increased the age is the lesser attachment anxiety as it decreases with increasing age. In addition, attachment security is associated with psychological and physical Well-being whereas in adulthood it is not. Similarly, insecure attachment is linked to more perceived negative caregiver. Older adults have attachments according life circumstances and evolve depending on their age, health and life
Swim, T. Investigating Attachment Quality: Typical and Atypical Scenarios. [Online]. [Accessed 17 December 2013]. Available from: http://www.cfs.purdue.edu/ITSI/conferenceDocs/08/Swim-Investigating_Attachment_Quality.pdf.