Is there any variables related to attachment and emotional regulation
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The Relationship Between Attachment and Emotional Regulation
Introduction to Attachment and Emotional Regulation
Attachment theory posits that the quality of early relationships, particularly with primary caregivers, significantly influences an individual's emotional development and regulation capabilities. Emotional regulation refers to the processes by which individuals influence their emotions, how they experience them, and how they express them. This article synthesizes research findings on the variables related to attachment and emotional regulation.
Secure Attachment and Positive Emotional Regulation
Secure attachment is consistently associated with better emotional regulation. Children with secure attachment tend to experience more global positive affect and less global negative affect. They are better at regulating their emotions and often use adaptive coping strategies such as seeking cognitive and social support1 4. Securely attached individuals are also more likely to recover from emotional distress effectively, demonstrating resilience in the face of emotional challenges4.
Insecure Attachment and Emotional Dysregulation
Insecure attachment, which includes avoidant, ambivalent, and disorganized attachment styles, is linked to various forms of emotional dysregulation:
Avoidant Attachment
Avoidantly attached individuals typically experience less global positive affect and have difficulties in regulating their emotions. They are less likely to use cognitive or social support coping strategies and often exhibit low emotional reactivity and poor emotional recovery1 4. Avoidant attachment is also associated with a tendency to suppress emotions, particularly negative ones, to avoid further rejection3.
Ambivalent Attachment
Ambivalently attached individuals often experience heightened negative affect and struggle with emotional regulation. They tend to maximize negative emotions to gain attention from caregivers, which can lead to greater emotional reactivity and difficulties in emotional recovery1 3 4. This attachment style is also linked to dysregulation strategies, irrespective of the type of emotion involved9.
Disorganized Attachment
Disorganized attachment is characterized by high emotional reactivity and significant difficulties in emotional recovery. These individuals experience less global positive affect and more global negative affect, indicating severe emotional dysregulation1 4. Disorganized attachment is also associated with both internalizing problems (e.g., depressive symptoms) and externalizing problems (e.g., aggressive behavior) through different emotional regulation strategies9.
Adult Attachment and Emotional Regulation
In adults, attachment styles continue to play a crucial role in emotional regulation. For instance, attachment anxiety is associated with greater emotional dysregulation and is a significant factor in the development and maintenance of anxiety disorders5. Insecure attachment in adults is also linked to greater control of emotions, less frequent positive emotions, and more frequent negative emotions, which can impact marital satisfaction and overall well-being6 7.
Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation
Emotion regulation skills mediate the relationship between attachment styles and various outcomes, including subjective well-being and psychological health. Secure attachment positively influences well-being through effective emotion regulation, while insecure attachment, particularly ambivalent and avoidant styles, negatively impacts well-being through poor emotional regulation7 8 10.
Conclusion
The relationship between attachment and emotional regulation is well-documented across different age groups. Secure attachment fosters positive emotional experiences and effective regulation strategies, while insecure attachment is linked to emotional dysregulation and various psychological issues. Understanding these dynamics can inform interventions aimed at improving emotional regulation and overall well-being by addressing attachment-related difficulties.
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Most relevant research papers on this topic
Parent-child attachment and children's experience and regulation of emotion: A meta-analytic review.
Parent-child attachment patterns significantly impact children's emotional development, with more securely attached children experiencing more positive emotions and better emotion regulation.
Meta-Analysis
Highly CitedAttachment orientations and emotion regulation.
Attachment orientations, influenced by early relationships, influence individuals' cognitive, behavioral, and neural patterns in emotion regulation.
Literature ReviewHighly CitedEmotion regulation: influences of attachment relationships.
Emotion regulation in infants serves two important functions: maintaining attachment relationships and signaling to caregivers about their needs.
Highly CitedParent–Child Attachment and Dynamic Emotion Regulation: A Systematic Review
Secure attachment is more consistently related to emotion recovery than reactivity, avoidant attachment is linked to low emotion reactivity and recovery, ambivalent attachment has greater emotion reactivity, and disorganized attachment leads to high emotion reactivity and recovery difficulties.
Systematic ReviewAdult attachment style and anxiety - The mediating role of emotion regulation.
Attachment anxiety is specifically relevant in anxiety disorders, with emotion dysregulation acting as a mediator between attachment anxiety and anxiety symptoms.
Observational Study
Rigorous JournalAdult attachment, emotional control, and marital satisfaction
Insecure attachment is linked to greater emotional control, less frequent positive emotions, and higher negative emotions in married couples, affecting marital satisfaction.
Observational StudyHighly CitedAdult attachment and interpersonal emotion regulation motives in daily life.
Attachment anxiety influences people's engagement with other people's emotions, leading to positive changes in their emotional well-being and relational well-being in daily interactions.
Observational StudyThe Relationship between Attachment and Subjective Well-being: The Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation Skill
Attachment styles impact subjective well-being through the mediating role of emotion regulation skill.
Observational StudyThe emotion regulation model of attachment:An emotion‐specific approach
Attachment anxiety and avoidance are linked to both internalizing and externalizing problems in early adolescents, with attachment avoidance affecting emotion regulation differently than attachment anxiety.
Observational StudyHighly CitedPsychological Well-being and Coping: the Predictive Value of Adult Attachment, Dispositional Mindfulness, and Emotion Regulation
Adult attachment, dispositional mindfulness, and emotion regulation are linked to psychological well-being, with defeatism coping acting as a mediator in these relationships.
Observational Study
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