Attachment Styles And Its Effect On Adult Romantic Relationships

John Bowlby developed the theory of attachment he researched the significance of the relationship between a mother and her child. His theory shows that this bond

The attachment style that an individual exhibits as an infant can affect their adult romantic relationships. An attachment pattern is established in early childhood attachments and continues to function as a working model for relationships in adulthood. This model of attachment influences how each of us reacts to our needs and how we go about getting them met. The ability to recognize one 's attachment can help someone to understand their strengths and vulnerabilities in a relationship.

The attachment theory is a theory proposed by John Bowlby. The theory basically states that infants need to be attached to someone in order to have successful relationships as they grow older. Bowlby says, “Attachment is a deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space”

Attachment theory, put forth by John Bowlby, is in agreement with Freudian psychoanalytic theory in that our early experiences with caregivers shape our adult ability to love. In contrast to psychoanalytic theory, attachment theory focuses on what Bowlby called the attachment response (Belsky, 2013, p. 15-16). Basically, we are genetically pre-programmed to form attachments with others because this will help us survive (McLeod, 2007). Bowlby believed in monotropy, which is an attachment conceptualized as being a vital and close bond with just one attachment figure, typically the mother. This attachment to the mother is the most important and if it is broken or disrupted during the critical two-year period the child will suffer irreversible long-term consequences of this maternal deprivation. This risk continues until the age of 5 (McLeod, 2007). So, based on this, a child who is 4 or 5 and whose parents are going through a divorce may experience a disrupted attachment to the mother due to diminished or incompetent parenting. Long-term consequences of maternal deprivation might include delinquency, reduced intelligence, increased aggression, depression and affectionless psychopathy. Attachment theory, just as in

One of the most important factors that affect child development is the relationship of the child with their primary caregiver. This is a tenet of developmental psychology known as attachment theory. John Bowlby, the creator of this theory, wanted to examine how early childhood experiences influence personality development. Attachment theory specifically examines infant’s reactions to being separated from their primary caregiver. Bowlby hypothesized that the differences in how children react to these situations demonstrates basic behavioral differences in infancy that will have consequences for later social and emotional development.

Individual attachment style and its effects on adult romantic relationships were examined. The hypothesis of this literature review was that insecure attachment style would negatively affect the overall dynamic of adult romantic relationships while secure attachment would promote positive and healthy romantic relationships. Empirical studies looking at attachment style and relationship issues such as one’s views of self and others, communication, sexual intimacy, childhood family dynamic and God were evaluated. Reviews of studies were in line with the hypothesis indicating that insecure attachment does negatively affect the overall dynamic of romantic

One of the key theorists of attachment is John Bowlby and his ‘Attachment theory". Bowlby believed ‘the attachment of a caregiver is an inherited mechanism to

British psychotherapist, John Bowlby (1907-1990) was recognized as the father of the attachment theory and advanced a multidisciplinary stance, which included psychoanalysis with ethnology and cognitive development. Bowlby (1969) wanted to understand more about the level of distress that occurred in infants when they were separated from their parents and how that experience impacted on their developmental wellbeing.

After reading about the adult attachment style theory, I learned that children obtain their styles from their parents/caregivers. My scores reflect that I am secure in my attachment styles. I was not surprised, I had very loving, supportive parents that never failed me or left me in times of need. They provided for me in every aspect that a parent should. I was raised in a very structured environment and that is how I parented. My scores, although not as low as what I thought, reflect I could use some work on my self-confidence and I am aware of this. I have worked on it and I have gained more self-confidence than when I started this program. I did not always lack self-confidence, this was something that happened later in life for several reasons.

The key principles of attachment theory were developed by John Bowlby. Bowlby

What are some types of parenting styles? What are the different attachments? To what extent do parenting styles and types of attachment affect adult’s ability to develop intimate relationship? These are all questions that I will be answering in this short but informative summary paper. I will be using a Scholarly Article called “ The effects of Parenting Styles and Childhood Attachment Patterns on Intimate Relationships”.

Attachment theory, developed by John Bowlby, Attachment is defined as the formation of a psychological and emotional relationship between an infant and its primary caregiver. It’s also a pattern of relational style that the child learns from the adults and caregivers whom play the largest role in the child’s life. That pattern is learned in early childhood and thought to repeat itself throughout an individual’s life, in both their social and romantic relationships.

An infant with a secure attachment style has a natural bond with their parent, where they are able to trust them, at the same time leaving their side to discover and explore their surroundings. In an insecure/resistant attachment the relationship the child has with their mother or caregiver is very clingy, thus making them very upset once the caregiver is away. When the mother or caregiver is back they are not easily comforted and resist their effort in comforting them. In an insecure/avoidant attachment the infant is, “indifferent and seems to avoid the mother, they are as easily comforted by a stranger, as by their parent” (Siegler 2011, p.429). Lastly, the disorganized/disoriented attachment is another insecure attachment style in which the infant has no way of coping with stress making their behavior confusing or contradictory. Through these brief descriptions of the attachment theory, many researchers have defined the turning point in which each attachment definition can have an influence on one’s self esteem, well-being and their marital relationship.

John Bowlby, a British psychologist (1907 to 1990) coined the term attachment. He was a psychiatrist and his influences were Freud, Melanie Klein and Lorenz. Bowlby’s attachment theory suggests that children come into the world biologically pre- programmed to form attachments with others as this will help them survive.

Many psychologists have come and gone, and many different theoretical orientations have been developed. With each orientation has come a new perspective on development, behaviour and mental processes. Some are similar, yet others could not be more contradictory. Attachment is one such theoretical orientation, developed by John Bowlby out of his dissatisfaction with other existing theories. Although Bowlby rejected psychoanalytical explanations for early infant bonds, the theory of attachment was influenced in part by the principles of psychoanalysis; in particular the observations by Ana Freud and Dorothy Burlingham of young children separated from