Attachment and depressive symptoms in middle childhood and early adolescence: Testing the validity of the emotion regulation model of attachment (original) (raw)
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Journal of Youth and Adolescence
Although widely accepted, attachment theory’s hypothesis that insecure attachment is associated with the development of depressive symptoms through emotion regulation strategies has never been longitudinally tested in adolescence. Additionally, previous research only focused on strategies for regulating negative affect, whereas strategies for regulating positive affect may also serve as a mechanism linking insecure attachment to depressive symptoms. This study aimed to fill these research gaps by testing whether the association between attachment and change in depressive symptoms over time is explained by strategies for regulating negative and positive affect in adolescence. Adolescents (N = 1706; 53% girls; Mage = 12.78 years, SDage = 1.54 at Time 1) were tested three times, with a 1-year interval between measurement times. They reported on their attachment anxiety and avoidance at Time 1, depressive symptoms at Times 1 and 3, and regulation of negative affect (brooding and dampeni...
The emotion regulation model of attachment:An emotion-specific approach
Personal Relationships, 2012
This research applies the emotion regulation (ER) model of attachment to the regulation of specific emotions, namely sadness and anger, in early adolescents. The study investigates how attachment and accompanying ER strategies relate to both internalizing and externalizing problems. Two separate cross-sectional studies (N = 197 and N = 310) supported different associations between attachment and ER (i.e., dysregulation and suppression). For attachment avoidance, associations with ER strategies seem to depend on the specific type of emotion involved, whereas attachment anxiety related to dysregulation irrespective of the type of emotions. Furthermore, Study 2 found that attachment anxiety and avoidance are associated with internalizing and externalizing problems via different ER strategies. Discussion focuses on the dynamics involved in associations between attachment, ER, and psychological problems.
Insecure attachment as a risk factor for future depressive symptoms in early adolescence
Journal of the American Academy of Child & …, 2002
Depressive symptoms are common among adolescents (Rutter, 1986). Both symptoms, especially among girls (Angold et al., in press; Garrison et al., 1990), and disorders (Lewinsohn et al., 1994) increase during adolescence. Increase of depressive symptoms seems to be most pronounced during early adolescence (Angold et al., in press; Rutter, 1986; Wichstrøm, 1999). Relationships within the family and relations with parents in particular have been studied as correlates and as possible etiological factors in the development of depressive problems in adolescence (Fombonne, 1996). There has been a marked theoretical interest in the concept of attachment to parents. Secure attachment to parents has been suggested as pivotal in buffering the development of depression in adolescence (Allen, 1999; Papini and Roggman, 1992). Attachment The attachment theory accentuates the importance of early attachment relationships for the child's development. It is hypothesized that attachment is formed in the relationship with the primary caregiver. The strength of attachment has been interpreted as an assessment of the individual's likelihood of using that relationship in times of stress and as a source of support for exploration (Bowlby, 1982) and autonomy (Allen, 1999). Central is the notion that secure or insecure attachment patterns give way to internally represented expectations, referred to as "the internal working model," about the caregiver's responsiveness and the child's own ability to elicit such behavior from the caregiver (Ainsworth, 1989; Bowlby, 1982). Both biological and cognitive processes are activated. Presumably, among adolescents cognitive and affective development promotes attachment organization, leading to a more generalized stance. The caregiver's emotional availability more than physical availability fosters
Parenting, 2014
Objective-Previous research has examined the developmental consequences, particularly in early childhood, of parents' supportive and unsupportive responses to children's negative emotions. Much less is known about factors that explain why parents respond in ways that may support or undermine their children's emotions, and even less is known about how these parenting processes unfold with adolescents. We examined the associations between mothers' attachment styles and their distress, harsh, and supportive responses to their adolescents' negative emotions two years later and whether these links were mediated by maternal emotion regulation difficulties.
Psychiatry Research
The present study aimed to examine (a) the relative contribution of perceived parental child-rearing behaviors and attachment on anxiety and depressive symptoms, and (b) the role of attachment as a possible mediator of the association between parental rearing and anxiety and depression. A sample of 1002 children (aged 9-12 years) completed a booklet of self-report questionnaires measuring parental rearing behaviors, attachment towards peers, and DSM anxiety and depressive disorder symptoms. We found that parental aversiveness, parental neglect, and fearful/preoccupied attachment, each accounted for a significant amount of the variance in both anxiety and depressive symptoms. In addition, parental overcontrol was found to account for unique variance in anxiety whereas communication/warmth accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in depression. A relevant finding was that fearful/preoccupied attachment was found to mediate the association between parental rearing behaviors and both anxiety and depression. Parental rearing behaviors and attachment to peers may act as risk factors to the development and/or maintenance of anxiety and depressive symptomatology in children. Findings may contribute to outline preventive and/or treatment programs to prevent or reduce both clinical anxiety and depression during childhood.
Attachment and depressive symptoms during adolescence: A developmental pathways analysis
Development and Psychopathology, 1991
This article uses a developmental pathway model to consider the role of attachment processes in adolescents' reports of depressive symptoms. Teen attachments were assessed with both interview and observational methods. Assessments of teens' strategies in the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) indicated that insecure and preoccupied strategies were associated with increased reports of depressive symptoms. Observations of motherteen problem-solving revealed that depressed teens engaged in interactions characterized by high levels of maternal dominance and dysfunctional anger. Maternal reports of teens' negative life events contributed additional variance to a regression model for depressive symptoms. Gender differences further specified pathways to depressive symptoms. Females reported more depressive symptoms, while depressed males engaged in problem-solving interactions characterized by high levels of dysfunctional anger. Competency-based treatments of depressive symptoms designed to improve parent-teen communication and meta-monitoring skills are discussed.
Attachment & Human Development, 2011
This study included two different methods to assess mother–child attachment, questionnaires, and a doll play story stem interview, so their overlap could be evaluated. In addition, we investigated how attachment is related to parenting and child depression. The sample was comprised of 10- to 12-year-olds (N = 87) and their mothers. Children completed questionnaires (assessing security, avoidance, and ambivalence), and were administered a doll play interview to assess attachment patterns (security, avoidance, ambivalence, and disorganization). Two aspects of parenting (warmth/ engagement and psychological control) were assessed with child reports and observer ratings of maternal behavior. We also obtained child reports of depressive symptoms. Questionnaire and interview measures of attachment security were related to one another, and each showed predictable associations with parenting and child depression. By contrast, results were less consistent for the ambivalent and avoidant insecure attachment patterns, although disorganized attachment showed some associations with parenting and child adjustment.
Attachment styles, emotion regulation, and adjustment in adolescence
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1998
Attachment style differences in psychological symptomatology, self-concept, and risky or problem behaviors were examined in a community sample (N = 1,989) of Black and White adolescents, 13 to 19 years old. Overall, secure adolescents were the best-adjusted group, though not necessarily the least likely to engage in risky behaviors. Anxious adolescents were the worst-adjusted group, reporting the poorest self-concepts and the highest levels of symptomatology and risk behaviors. In contrast, avoidant adolescents reported generally high levels of symptomatology and poor self-concepts but similar levels of risk behaviors to those found among secures. Mediation analyses suggested that the observed differences in problem behaviors were at least partially accounted for by the differential experience of distress symptoms (primarily hostility and depression) and by social competence. Finally, patterns of attachment effects were similar across age, gender, and racial groups, with some important exceptions.
Attachment and emotional regulation in adolescents with depression
Vojnosanitetski pregled, 2017
Background/Aim. Attachment and emotion regulation skills are recognized as important factors in the development of depression, but their specifics have rarely been discussed in clinical adolescent population. The aim of our study was to investigate attachment and emotion regulation strategies in adolescents with depression. Methods. The sample consisted of 101 adolescents, age 16 to 24, divided into three groups: 1) 41 adolescents with the diagnosis of depressive disorder; 2) 30 adolescents with the diagnosis of anxiety disorder; 3) 30 health adolescents (without psychiatric diagnosis). The assessment was done by the following instruments: the Socio-demographic questionnaire; the Semistructured clinical interview (SCID-I) for the Diagnostic and Stratistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV); the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI); the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA) and Emotional Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ). Data were analyzed using MANCOVA and parti...