Adult Attachment Theory

Abstract How relationships are developed and the people that they are developed with as a child, is critical to the development of behaviors and relationships in adulthood. The theory of attachment in based solely around this very principle. The patterns a child displays towards primary caregivers and how those caregivers respond to the needs of that child will predict how that child will respond to relationship and change as an adult.

Attachment Theory The forces that drive relationships between individuals and the affects those forces have on them, define the theory of attachment. It is said to have become the “dominant approach in understanding interpersonal relationships” (Bretherton, 1992). The relationships
One of the reasons this occurred was because labs were conducting longitudinal studies on effects of attachment (Sonkin, 2005). The children from the Strange Situation study had grown up and researchers began to observe the continuity of their attachment patterns. Although the behaviors of infant and adult attachment are similar, the terms to define adult attachment are different. Children who are securely attached are referred to as autonomous adults; ambivalent children are called preoccupied adults; avoidant children are known as dismissing adults; and disorganized children are classified as unresolved adults (Sonkin, 2005). Upon doing research on attachment in adults, three major points were developed. First is that the attachment behaviors of a child can be predicted by the attachment behaviors displayed in the parent. Second, the attachment behaviors a child has will continue throughout adolescence and into adulthood. Although maturity and experiences can cause a change in attachment classification in either direction, it is not commonly seen. Lastly, insecurely attached adults have a harder time adjusting to change than adults who are securely attached (Sonkin, 2005). The two most commonly used methods for assessing attachment in adults are interviews and self-report scales. Mary Main developed the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) which is the interview most commonly used. It is comprised of 20
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