Adult attachment, working models, and relationship quality in dating couples.

Abstract

Three studies were conducted to examine the correlates of adult attachment. In Study 1, an 18-item scale to measure adult attachment style dimensions was developed based on Kazan and Shaver's (1987) categorical measure. Factor analyses revealed three dimensions underlying this measure: the extent to which an individual is comfortable with closeness, feels he or she can depend on others, and is anxious or fearful about such things as being abandoned or unloved. Study 2 explored the relation between these attachment dimensions and working models of self and others. Attachment dimensions were found to be related to self-esteem, expressiveness, instrumentality, trust in others, beliefs about human nature, and styles of loving. Study 3 explored the role of attachment style dimensions in three aspects of ongoing dating relationships: partner matching on attachment dimensions; similarity between the attachment of one's partner and caregiving style of one's parents; and relationship quality, including communication, trust, and satisfaction. Evidence was obtained for partner matching and for similarity between one's partner and one's parents, particularly for one's opposite-sex parent. Dimensions of attachment style were strongly related to how each partner perceived the relationship, although the dimension of attachment that best predicted quality differed for men and women. For women, the extent to which their partner was comfortable with closeness was the best predictor of relationship quality, whereas the best predictor for men was the extent to which their partner was anxious about being abandoned or unloved. It is generally believed that the nature and quality of one's close relationships in adulthood are strongly influenced by affective events that took place during childhood, particularly within the child-caretaker relationship. Yet, only recently have social psychologists begun to integrate work on adult love relationships with developmental theory and research on the nature and functioning of parent-child relations (Hartup & Rubin, 1986; Kazan & Shaver, 1987;Hinde, 1979;HindeS Shaver & Hazan, 1988; Shaver, Hazan, & Bradshaw, 1988; Shaver R Weiss, 1982,1986). Of particular interest has been the extent to which a child's early attachment relationships with caretakers shape important beliefs about the self and social world, which then guide relationships in adulthood. Recently, Hazan and Shaver (1987) have used infant attachment theory (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978; Bowlby, 1982,1973,1980) as a framework for examining how adult love relationships are related to early parent-child interactions. The