title: Adult attachment style dimensions in women who have gay or bisexual fathers.
abstract: This study explored possible differences in adult attachment style dimensions between women with gay or bisexual fathers (n = 68) and women with heterosexual fathers (n = 68) using a revised version of the Adult Attachment Scale (Collins & Read, 1990b). Data analysis revealed highly significant differences between groups on all three adult attachment dimensions. Women with gay or bisexual fathers were significantly less comfortable with closeness and intimacy (t = 5.264, P = .0001), less able to trust and depend on others (t = 6.621, P = .0001), and experienced more anxiety in relationships (t = 4.368, P = .0001) than women with heterosexual fathers. Theoretical and methodological issues, conclusions, and implications related to the findings are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral Sciences, Community and Health Systems, College of Nursing, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ 07079, USA. sirotath@shu.edu
authors.forename: Theodora
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sirota
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D032721:Adult Children / Q000523:psychology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology; D001727:Bisexuality / Q000523:psychology; D001900:Boston; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005220:Fathers / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D015141:Los Angeles; D008297:Male; D009519:New York City; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009769:Object Attachment; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology; D011287:Prejudice; D012495:San Francisco; D013240:Stereotyping; D035502:Trust; D014930:Women / Q000523:psychology*