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Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships
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Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Mental Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2024) | Viewed by 20064

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Santa Parrello

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, 80133 Napoli NA, Italy
Interests: attachment; couple dynamics; family relations; sibling relationships; interpersonal relationships; LGBT; dreams; COVID-19
Prof. Dr. Massimiliano Sommantico

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Dynamic Psychology Laboratory, Department of Humanities, University of Naples Federico II, 80133 Napoli NA, Italy
Interests: attachment; couple dynamics; family relations; sibling relationships; LGBT; interpersonal relationships; dreams; COVID-19

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Attachment appears to be a fundamental component of emotional and behavioral development throughout one’s lifespan, especially during late adolescence and young adulthood.

Recently, the attachment process has been reconceptualized, leading to the theory that people may form multiple attachment ties with significant others in addition to their primary caregiver. In this sense, Sroufe and colleagues (2005) proposed a hierarchical view of development, indicating that, when facing new developmental tasks, each stage of development incorporates previous adaptations, and these new experiences may produce fundamental transformations, thus involving continuity and changes. Furthermore, attachment can be analyzed in the context of the significant functions played not only by parents but also siblings, and, in addition, peers and romantic partners in later developmental stages. Moreover, despite the significant research that has investigated attachment to parents, peers, and romantic partners, few studies have examined sibling attachment. Research has instead focused on attachment hierarchies to conceptualize how individuals manage the maintenance of attachment bonds with primary attachment figures as they begin to form new bonds, demonstrating that romantic partners, as well as siblings, may also occupy important roles as sources of attachment.

This Special Issue invites the submission of papers addressing these topics, especially those combining a high academic standard with a practical and clinical focus on couple and family relations. 

Reference

Sroufe, L.A.; Egeland, B.; Carlson, E.; Collins, W.A. The development of the person: The Minnesota study of risk and adaptation from birth to adulthood. The Guilford Press: New York, NY, 2005; pp. 384.

Dr. Santa Parrello
Prof. Dr. Massimiliano Sommantico
Guest Editors

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • attachment
  • couple
  • family
  • siblings
  • LGBT couples
  • interpersonal relationships
  • development

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 553 KiB  
Article
The Efficacy of Two Group Interventions on Mental Representations, Attachment Security, and Trauma Symptoms in Ethnically and Socioeconomically Minoritized Young Adolescents in an Urban Middle School
by Geoff Goodman, Bryan Blum, Carla Rentrop, Norka Malberg and Palakrajiv Agrawal
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(10), 5789; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20105789 - 11 May 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2215
Abstract
Symptoms resulting from childhood trauma can negatively impact socioemotional well-being and school performance during early adolescence unless positive changes in attachment security and mental representations of significant relationships occur. A sample of 109 eighth grade urban students were randomly assigned to one of [...] Read more.
Symptoms resulting from childhood trauma can negatively impact socioemotional well-being and school performance during early adolescence unless positive changes in attachment security and mental representations of significant relationships occur. A sample of 109 eighth grade urban students were randomly assigned to one of two weekly, one-hour, school-based group interventions—Storytelling/Story-Acting for Adolescents (STSA-A) or Mentalization-Based Treatment Group Intervention (MBT-G). The Object Relations Inventory (ORI), Adolescent Attachment Questionnaire (AAQ) and Child PSTD Stress Scale (CPSS) were administered to students and their primary group leaders at the beginning (October) and end (May) of the intervention protocol as outcome variables. Participants in both the STSA-A and MBT-G intervention conditions experienced significant increases in attachment security and decreases in trauma symptoms. Over the course of eight months of group intervention, affective valence of paternal mental representations significantly decreased for boys and for participants in the STSA-A condition, while affective valence of primary group leader mental representations significantly decreased for participants in the MBT-G condition. STSA-A and MBT-G were found to be efficacious at improving attachment security and reducing trauma symptoms in young adolescents. The strengths of each group intervention for addressing interpersonal issues unique to specific types of adolescents are discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships)
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14 pages, 391 KiB  
Article
Relationship between Executive Functions, Social Cognition, and Attachment State of Mind in Adolescence: An Explorative Study
by Riccardo Williams, Silvia Andreassi, Marta Moselli, Fiorella Fantini, Annalisa Tanzilli, Vittorio Lingiardi and Fiorenzo Laghi
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(4), 2836; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20042836 - 6 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3289
Abstract
Background: The passage from pre-adolescence to adolescence is presented as a turning point for the achievement of those abilities in social understanding as they commonly appear in adulthood. Developmental perspectives point to the possible role of neuro-cognitive maturation and social experiences to facilitate [...] Read more.
Background: The passage from pre-adolescence to adolescence is presented as a turning point for the achievement of those abilities in social understanding as they commonly appear in adulthood. Developmental perspectives point to the possible role of neuro-cognitive maturation and social experiences to facilitate this growth. This paper has the goal to goalsto propose a valid and reliable measure of the new quantitative and qualitative advancements in social understanding occurring in the adolescent passage; relying on this, the research has two main objectives (a) to establish the associations between the advancements in social understanding and the executive functions held responsible for the neuro-cognitive rearrangements of adolescence; (c) to evidence the significant associations between attachment models and the development of social understanding in this phase of life. Methods: 100 subjects (50 boys and 50 girls, aged 11–15) were administered with AICA, SCORS, CNT, Stroop Color-Word Test, and WISC-III. Results: Advancements in the complexity of self–other representations and mentalization of interpersonal exchanges significantly occurs in the passage from pre-adolescence to adolescence and seem to be promoted by increased performances in executive control and cognitive shifting. Dismissing state of mind with respect to attachment is associated with lower development of social understanding in adolescence. The neurocognitive reorganization that underlies the passage from pre-adolescence to adolescence seems to provide the scaffolding for more sophisticated interpretations of the social world. Past and current affective experience can boost or hinder the full deployment of such human maturational potential. Given the importance of social cognition for adjustment and psychopathology, clinical intervention should target the amelioration of individual and family abilities in social reasoning and mentalization. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships)
18 pages, 1374 KiB  
Article
Romantic Duration, Relationship Quality, and Attachment Insecurity among Dating Couples
by Harry Freeman, Jeffrey Simons and Nicholas F. Benson
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(1), 856; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20010856 - 3 Jan 2023
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 9283
Abstract
For many young adults today dating is not taken as a path to marriage, but as a relationship to be considered on its own terms with a beginning, middle, and end. Yet, research has not kept pace as most studies that look at [...] Read more.
For many young adults today dating is not taken as a path to marriage, but as a relationship to be considered on its own terms with a beginning, middle, and end. Yet, research has not kept pace as most studies that look at relationships over time focus on marriages. In the present study, we look at individual differences and normative patterns of dating relationship quality over time. We tested a path model of associations between relationship duration, attachment insecurity, and four relationship quality domains (sexual frequency, commitment, satisfaction, and companionship) among a large sample of dating young adults (N = 1345). Based on a conceptual model of romantic relationship development, results supported expectations that dating trajectories are curvilinear, with unique patterns of accent, peak, and decent for each relationship domain. Dating duration also moderated the relationship between dating quality and attachment insecurity with anxious attachment becoming a more salient predictor of lower satisfaction and lower commitment in long-term versus short-term relationships. A quadratic interaction with sexual frequency indicated that insecurity predicted less sexual activity in new relationships, more activity among relationships between two and four years, but then less again in longer-term relationships. Findings suggest patterns of stability and change in dating relationships during emerging adulthood that complement those observed from the marriage literature. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships)
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15 pages, 645 KiB  
Article
Attachment and Dyadic Forgiveness in Individuals in Same-Sex Couple Relationships
by Mónica Guzmán-González, Nikolás Bekios, Josefa Burgos, Camila Obregón, Benjamín Tabilo and Giulia Casu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(18), 11152; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191811152 - 6 Sep 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2287
Abstract
(1) Background: There is abundant evidence linking attachment insecurity to lower levels of interpersonal forgiveness. However, this association has been almost exclusively explored in people in a different-sex couple relationship, and there is little evidence referring to gay, lesbian, and bisexual (LGB) people [...] Read more.
(1) Background: There is abundant evidence linking attachment insecurity to lower levels of interpersonal forgiveness. However, this association has been almost exclusively explored in people in a different-sex couple relationship, and there is little evidence referring to gay, lesbian, and bisexual (LGB) people in a same-sex relationship. The present study examines the association between romantic attachment and dyadic forgiveness in individuals involved in a same-sex couple relationship. (2) Methods: A total of 248 participants (52.8% female) aged 18–67 years (mean age: 31.02 ± 9.39) completed the Experiences in Close Relationships questionnaire and the Transgression-Related Interpersonal Motivation Inventory. (3) Results: Structural equation modeling showed that attachment avoidance was more strongly associated with dyadic forgiveness than attachment anxiety. Higher levels of attachment anxiety and avoidance were both linked to higher levels of avoidance motivation in response to partner transgressions, and higher attachment avoidance was linked to lower benevolence motivation. Multigroup analyses indicated a gender-specific association between attachment avoidance and revenge motivations, which was positive and significant among men only. (4) Conclusions: In the present study, we have identified that attachment avoidance plays a more prominent role in the tendency to forgive in same-sex couples. Implications at both theoretical and clinical practice levels are discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships)
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13 pages, 392 KiB  
Article
Psychometric Properties of the Sibling Attachment Inventory in Mexican Young Adults
by Maricela Osorio Guzmán, Massimiliano Sommantico, Carlos Prado Romero, Barbara De Rosa and Santa Parrello
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(14), 8570; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19148570 - 14 Jul 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1689
Abstract
The aim of this work was to adapt and validate the Sibling Attachment Inventory (SAI) in Mexican young adults and analyze its psychometric properties. Using an Internet-based survey, data were collected from 307 (64.5% female) Mexican young adults university students (aged 18–30). Exploratory [...] Read more.
The aim of this work was to adapt and validate the Sibling Attachment Inventory (SAI) in Mexican young adults and analyze its psychometric properties. Using an Internet-based survey, data were collected from 307 (64.5% female) Mexican young adults university students (aged 18–30). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed to determine the factor structure of the revised Mexican version of the Sibling Attachment Inventory (SAI-RMx). Convergent and predictive validity were verified by carrying out correlations with the parent form of the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA), the Lifespan Sibling Relationship Scale (LSRS), the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSE). Results indicated that the SAI-RMx presents good levels of internal consistency and a monodimensional structure, also providing evidence for convergent, predictive, and construct validity. Furthermore, secure attachments were linked with high levels of self-esteem, as well as with high levels of life satisfaction. The SAI-RMx is expected to be a reliable instrument for measuring the global level and the three components of secure attachment between siblings in the young adult’s Mexican population. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Attachment in Couple, Parent-Child and Sibling Relationships)
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