Understanding attachment security in family context.
Attachment theory (J. Bowlby, 1969) is not just about how internalized models of relationships affect interpersonal outcomes; it is primarily a theory about how interpersonal processes affect social and cognitive development. This study tested 3 hypotheses about the interpersonal sources of adult attachment security: (a) attachment security is relationship specific, (b) characteristics of partners affect attachment security, and (c) security of attachment is reciprocated. Measures of attachment security were obtained from 2 parents and 2 children (adolescent or older) in 208 middle-class families. Results of social relations model analysis (D. A. Kenny & L. La Voie, 1984) supported all 3 hypotheses. The author concludes that internal working models of relationships may not be so "internal" after all and that greater emphasis on the interpersonal sources of adult attachment security is warranted.
Cook
W L
WL
Department of Psychiatry, Maine Medical Center, Portland 04102-3175, USA. cookw@mail.mmc.org
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D009769:Object Attachment; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012649:Self Concept; D012917:Social Adjustment