W7 - Attachment

Question 1

What are the three components of adult attachment prototypes?

Answer 1

Attachment, caregiving, sexual (mating).

Question 2

What are the three core functions of adult attachment relationships?

Answer 2

Proximity seeking, safe haven, secure base.

Question 3

Define the attachment behavioral system.

Answer 3

A biologically evolved neural program for survival, organizing attachment behaviors to achieve ‘felt security’.

Question 4

What is the goal of the attachment behavioral system?

Answer 4

To terminate activation upon achieving security.

Question 5

What do ‘working models’ in attachment consist of?

Answer 5

Beliefs, expectations, memories, goals, and interpersonal strategies.

Question 6

What role do working models play in adult relationships?

Answer 6

Guide behavior, bias interpretation/storage of interactions, influence new relationships.

Question 7

What are the two dimensions of adult attachment orientations?

Answer 7

Anxiety and avoidance.

Question 8

How is ‘attachment-related anxiety’ characterized?

Answer 8

Desire for closeness but fear of rejection and abandonment.

Question 9

How is ‘attachment-related avoidance’ characterized?

Answer 9

Discomfort with emotional closeness, preference for self-reliance.

Question 10

What attachment style reflects low anxiety and low avoidance?

Answer 10

Secure attachment.

Question 11

Which attachment style prioritizes independence and avoids closeness?

Answer 11

Dismissing-avoidant.

Question 12

Which attachment style seeks excessive closeness and validation from others?

Answer 12

Preoccupied.

Question 13

Describe fearful-avoidant attachment.

Answer 13

Avoids intimacy due to fear of rejection but desires closeness.

Question 14

What tool is used to assess adult attachment orientations?

Answer 14

Brennan et al.’s Experiences in Close Relationships (ECR).

Question 15

What are the main dimensions measured by the ECR?

Answer 15

Attachment-related anxiety and avoidance.

Question 16

What are the psychometric properties of the ECR?

Answer 16

High reliability, modest correlation with Big Five traits.

Question 17

What is a critique of the ECR Anxiety scale?

Answer 17

Acquiescence bias due to only one reverse-scored item.

Question 18

Why is ECR less precise for highly secure individuals?

Answer 18

It lacks sensitivity in measuring high levels of attachment security.

Question 19

What is security priming in attachment research?

Answer 19

Activating mental representations of security to test causality.

Question 20

What are the effects of security priming?

Answer 20

Enhanced relational behaviors, reduced defensiveness, improved perceptions.

Question 21

Name one historical model of adult attachment with three categories.

Answer 21

Hazan & Shaver’s model (1987).

Question 22

Name the four attachment categories in Bartholomew’s model.

Answer 22

Secure, preoccupied, dismissing, fearful.

Question 23

What is the primary critique of categorical attachment models?

Answer 23

Low stability and inability to capture variations.

Question 24

How do dimensional models improve upon categorical models?

Answer 24

By using continuous scales for greater variation capture.

Question 25

What are the three stages in the development of romantic relationships?

Answer 25

Initiation, maintenance, dissolution.

Question 26

What activities characterize the initiation stage of a romantic relationship?

Answer 26

Flirting, dating, self-presentation, and self-disclosure.

Question 27

What processes promote relationship maintenance?

Answer 27

Interdependence, communication, conflict management, and caregiving.

Question 28

What is the focus of the dissolution stage in romantic relationships?

Answer 28

Loss of interdependence and failure of stability-promoting efforts.

Question 29

Name a personality trait linked to providing emotional support and trust in relationships.

Answer 29

Communion.

Question 30

Which personality trait involves traits like dominance and assertiveness?

Answer 30

Agency.

Question 31

How does self-control contribute to relationship stability?

Answer 31

By managing conflicts and exercising restraint.

Question 32

What is the Ideal Standards Model in relationship formation?

Answer 32

Framework linking partner preferences to attachment orientations.

Question 33

How does attachment-related anxiety affect partner preferences?

Answer 33

Prioritizes warmth and trustworthiness for long-term strategy.

Question 34

What partner traits are valued by individuals with high attachment-related avoidance?

Answer 34

Health, attractiveness, and status/resources for short-term strategies.

Question 35

How does anxiety impact responses to electronic intrusiveness in relationships?

Answer 35

Linked to higher intrusiveness and electronic monitoring.

Question 36

What attachment orientation predicts jealousy and surveillance behaviors?

Answer 36

Anxiety.

Question 37

What factors mediate the link between attachment insecurity and lower satisfaction?

Answer 37

Relationship self-efficacy, duration, and conflict resolution.

Question 38

How does attachment avoidance influence attitudes toward infidelity?

Answer 38

Associated with permissive attitudes and higher likelihood of infidelity.

Question 39

What is the 'weak link' effect in relationships?

Answer 39

The least secure partner strongly impacts relationship quality.

Question 40

What is the buffering effect in attachment theory?

Answer 40

Secure partners can mitigate the effects of insecure attachment in the other.

Question 41

What is the relationship between initial marital satisfaction and dissolution risk?

Answer 41

High initial satisfaction reduces the likelihood of dissolution.

Question 42

Why are attachment orientations better predictors of relationship quality than Big Five traits?

Answer 42

They explain a greater variance in relationship quality (21% vs. 5%).

Question 43

How do changes in attachment security affect relationship quality?

Answer 43

Fluctuations in attachment insecurity negatively impact quality.

Question 44

What are two therapy techniques to promote attachment security?

Answer 44

Emotion-focused therapy and security priming.