Research on the devaluation of attractive alternatives has consistently shown that the strength of one’s relationship commitment can influence an individual’s judgements about the attractiveness of a potential mate. Specifically, depending on a person’s degree of relationship commitment, he or she may devalue the physical attractiveness of that alternative as a means of minimizing the perceived threat to his or her relationship. Because the devaluation process is argued to operate as a function of perceived relationship threat, I hypothesized that in addition to the beholder’s relationship commitment, the beholder’s attachment anxiety, attachment avoidance, social anxiety, and generalized anxiety should also predict attractiveness devaluation, since a heightened perception of threat is a shared feature among these constructs. Additional theoretical rationale for these hypotheses is derived from modern evolutionary theories of attachment, particularly as they pertain to the function of attachment security within mating contexts. Additionally, I hypothesized that these same five variables would predict both relationship quality and relationship break-up six months after initial data collection. Results generally supported all six hypotheses with some important qualifications. Relationship commitment and social anxiety each predicted attractiveness devaluation in female participants only, and attachment anxiety and avoidance predicted devaluation in male participants only. Generalized anxiety also predicted attractiveness ratings for certain targets but only when the two facets of stress and anxiety were used as separate predictors. Moreover, evidence of devaluation was also found for traits other than attractiveness (i.e., interestingness and intelligence) as well as for same-sex targets. Finally, regarding relationship outcomes, participants who scored higher on measures of anxiety also reported being less committed to their relationships on average and had higher rates of break-up at follow-up. Clinical, social, and research implication of these findings are discussed.

Objective: This systematic review explored how “adjustment” is generally defined in adults with an acquired visible difference (AVD) and what positive psychological factors have been evidence to be associated with positive coping and processes of adjustment in AVD. Method: A systematic search for peer reviewed journal articles from 1980 to February 2016 was conducted using: PyschINFO, Medline, EMBASE and CINAHL. Studies were appraised according to eligibility criteria and evaluated against a quality criterion to assess risk of bias. Results: Fourteen studies were included and were in the areas of head and neck cancer, burns and amputation. Selected studies demonstrated inconsistent conceptualisations of adjustment ranging from: lack of psychopathology, resilience, post-traumatic growth and quality of life. Psychological factors identified were; social functioning (social support, social self-efficacy), coping strategies (emotion, problem-focused, active coping) and dispositional optimism. Studies were considered to be of moderate methodological quality with weaknesses including; a lack of control/comparison groups, lack of measure sensitive to the unique challenges of living with AVD and minimal account for confounding variables. Results are discussed in the context of future research implications. Objective: This study aimed to explore the relationship between two dimensions of attachment insecurity (avoidance and anxiety), body image dissatisfaction and perfectionism using theoretically driven multiple mediation models that included emotion dysregulation and interpersonal problems as hypothesised mediators. Method: Fifty female outpatients seeking cosmetic surgery on the National Health Service (NHS) and 26 females interested in seeking cosmetic surgery within the public domain participated in this cross-sectional study (N=76). Participants completed measures of attachment avoidance and anxiety, body image dissatisfaction, perfectionism, emotion dysregulation and interpersonal problems. Results: Attachment insecurity was significantly associated with body image dissatisfaction and perfectionism. Interpersonal problems and emotion dysregulation also significantly partially mediated the relationship between attachment insecurity and body image dissatisfaction, specifically satisfaction with discrete aspects of body parts. Emotion dysregulation was also found to significantly partially mediate the relationship between avoidant attachment and perfectionism, but not anxiety. The clinical implications of this research are discussed.

No description available.

The thesis deals with connections between attachment and eating disorders (EDs) in females. It is divided into two sections - literature review and research. In the literature review, we define key subjects of the thesis, i.e. eating disorders and the concept of attachment. The research section is based on quantitative research. The research aims to explore 1) the relationship between ED risk and the dimension of attachment avoidance - anxiety within the concept of attachment, 2) the relationship between ED risk and early memories of warmth and safeness, and 3) if the dimension of attachment avoidance - anxiety within the concept of attachment and early memories of warmth and safeness increase the probability of EDs. The research was conducted via online questionnaire survey. The research sample consisted of 570 females in young adulthood (aged 20-30). The measures used in the research include Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), the ECR scale, and the EMWSS scale. The findings for our research sample suggest a statistically significant positive relationship between the dimension of attachment avoidance in the ECR scale and "Bulimia and Food Preoccupation" and "Oral Control" subscales in EAT-26. There has also been found a statistically significant positive relationship between the dimension of...

The purpose of this study was to explore the concerns of parents upon learning about their children’s gay or lesbian sexual orientation from the conceptual framework of attachment theory. Personal and contextual factors such as parents’ attachment anxiety and avoidance, parent and child gender, length of time since disclosure, and parents’ prior interpersonal contact with gay and lesbian person(s) were examined to see how they influence parents’ concerns. Members of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) support groups were electronically surveyed using the Experiences in Close Relationships - Short Form (ECR-S; Wei, Russell, Mallinckrodt & Vogel, 2007) and the Concerns of Parents of Lesbians (COPLAG; Conley, 2011b). A total of 296 parents met the criteria to be considered participants. The results of this study indicated that parental concerns are correlated with attachment anxiety, but not attachment avoidance. There were significant differences in concern levels between parents who reported high levels of interpersonal contact with gay or lesbian people and those who reported low levels. Parents’ concerns were significantly higher for gay sons than for lesbian daughters. Amount of time since disclosure was not found to be a significant factor in parental concerns; however, attachment anxiety and amount of time since disclosure were negatively correlated. Additionally, parents who were aware of their child’s sexual orientation for more than five years reported lower levels of attachment anxiety than parents who were aware of their child’s gay or lesbian sexual orientation for less than five years. Although parent gender was a variable in this study, too few fathers participated, precluding analyses using parent gender. Overall, the results indicate that parents’ concerns about having gay and lesbian children are influenced by both intrapsychic and contextual factors.

The study aims to investigate the effects of married women&rsquo / s attachment security, caregiving styles, how they initiated marriage (i.e., love vs. arranged) and whether they have egalitarian or traditional marriage on their marital satisfaction and attachment figure transference to their husband. It is expected that attachment to spouse would be stronger and attachment functions would be transferred earlier in love marriages than arranged marriages. Moreover, caregiving styles, attachment security, and egalitarian structure of marriage are expected to predict transference of attachment functions to husbands and marital satisfaction. Married women (N = 204) filled out a questionnaire package including the measures of division of labor in house chores, significant people in their life, attachment anxiety and avoidance, caregiving styles, and marital satisfaction. A series of ANCOVA controlling for the duration of marriage was conducted to compare the participants with arranged and love marriages. Separate hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to predict attachment strength and satisfaction separately for love and arranged marriages. Results revealed no significant difference between arranged and love marriages on the strength and timing of attachment figure transference to spouse. In both types of marriage, sensitive and responsive caregiving styles and low attachment avoidance were associated with stronger attachment to spouse. Although those with egalitarian relationships reported higher levels of marital satisfaction in both love and arranged marriages, women with both egalitarian and love marriages reported the highest levels of marital satisfaction than those with traditional and love marriage. The findings were discussed considering cultural context and previous work.

Forskning om sexuell hälsa utgår ofta från ett patologiskt perspektiv och sällan belyses att sex kan vara hälsofrämjande. Sexuell nöjdhet är en hälsofrämjande aspekt och kan beskrivas som en individs kognitiva och emotionella attityd gentemot den egna sexuella aktiviteten. Erfarenheter av nära relationer och förmågan att vara närvarande i stunden kan ha betydelse för dessa attityder. Syftet med föreliggande studie var att undersöka sambandet mellan vuxenanknytning, dispositionell mindfulness (dvs tendens att vara medvetet närvarande i vardagen) och sexuell nöjdhet hos svenska universitets- och högskolestudenter. Ett sekundärt syfte var att utvärdera psykometriska egenskaper hos den svenska översättningen av självskattningsformuläret Sexual Satisfaction Questionnaire (SSQ). Totalt 158 respondenter inkluderades i studien efter att via en digital enkät besvarat självskattningsformulären Erfarenheter av Nära Relationer (ENR), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ_SWE) och SSQ. Resultatet visade att samband förekommer mellan fenomenen samt indikerar att relationen mellan vuxenanknytning och sexuell nöjdhet medieras av dispositionell mindfulness. Resultatet tydde på att SSQ är ett reliabelt mätinstrument. Slutsatsen är att trygg anknytning och högre nivå av dispositionell mindfulness är associerat med högre nivå av sexuell nöjdhet. Lägre nivå av sexuell nöjdhet hos personer med mer anknytningsängslighet och/eller anknytningsundvikande tycks helt eller delvis kunna förklaras av att dessa individer också tenderar att vara mindre medvetet närvarande i vardagen. Resultatet bör utvärderas genom replikering och vidare studier bör undersöka andra aspekter som kan ha betydelse för sexuell nöjdhet. Huruvida mindfulness-baserade insatser skulle kunna ge positiva effekter på sexuell nöjdhet, särskilt för individer med otrygg anknytning, är en fråga för framtida forskning. / Research on sexual health is often based on a pathological perspective and rarely emphasize sex as health-promoting. Sexual satisfaction is one health-promoting aspect that can be described as an individuals’ cognitive and emotional attitudes towards their own sexual activity. Experiences of close relationships and the tendency to be mindful could be of significance to these attitudes.  This study aims to examine the relationship between adult attachment, dispositional mindfulness (i.e., tendency to be mindful in everyday life) and sexual satisfaction. A secondary aim was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Sexual Satisfaction Questionnaire (SSQ) in Swedish. A total of 158 respondents were included in this study after participating in an online survey containing the self-assessment questionnaires Erfarenheter av Nära Relationer (ENR), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ_SWE) and SSQ. The results showed correlations between the variables and that the relationship between adult attachment and sexual satisfaction appears to be mediated by dispositional mindfulness. The results indicate that SSQ is a reliable scale. In conclusion secure attachment and higher levels of dispositional mindfulness are associated with higher levels of sexual satisfaction. Lower sexual satisfaction among individuals with more attachment anxiety and/or avoidance could be explained by their tendency to be less mindful in everyday life. The results should be evaluated through replication and further studies ought to investigate other aspects that may be of significance for sexual satisfaction. Whether mindfulness-based interventions could have positive effects on sexual satisfaction, especially for individuals with insecure attachment, is an issue for future research.

No description available.

The overarching question of the study was how common mutual love is, and to what extent attachment relates to relationship asymmetries. Four research questions and four hypotheses were posed and explored using a cross-sectional survey design with data analyzed using quantitative methods. Instruments were employed to measure passionate love, companionate love, partner value, emotional involvement and attachment. All four hypotheses found partial support. The main result show that a) asymmetries are relatively common on all scales b) mutual love means increased satisfaction, but mainly for women c) for most couples partners take turn at being the strong link, and this fluctuating dynamic leads to increased satisfaction c) attachment anxiety is related to asymmetries in romantic obsession rather than general passion d) avoidance in men relate to asymmetries in passionate love whereas avoidance in women relate to asymmetries in companionate love e) it seems common to have some form of positive illusions about whether one’s relationship is mutual or not. Finally, disagreeing about emotional involvement affects satisfaction more than actual asymmetries in love. The conclusion drawn is that honest communication is more important than mutual love.