Adult attachment style and vulnerability to depression

Murphy, Barbara; Bates, Glen

doi:10.1016/s0191-8869(96)00277-2

Cited by 157 publications

(137 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Similar results have been reported using both the Depressive Experience Questionnaire (Blatt, D'afflitti, & Quinlan, 1976) Murphy and Bates (1997) assessed attachment (i.e., anxiety and avoidance), dependence, self-criticism, and depression simultaneously. They found that dependence was positively associated with attachment anxiety but not related to attachment avoidance while self-criticism was found to be related to both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance.…”

Section: Attachment and Depressionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Empirically, Murphy and Bates (1997) and Zuroff and Fitzpatrick (1995) indicated a positive and moderate association between attachment anxiety and dependence as well as selfcriticism.…”

Section: Attachment and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…They not only emphasize self-reliance (Fraley, Davis, & Shaver, 1998) but also drive themselves to be perfect to avoid others' rejection (e.g., if I am perfect, no one can hurt me) and to manage their hidden sense of imperfections (Wei, Mallinckdrodt, Russell, & Abraham, 2004). Reports indicated a consistent correlation between attachment avoidance and self-criticism (Murphy & Bates, 1997). However, the empirical association between attachment avoidance and dependence is mixed, with Murphy and Bates indicating a non-significant association for these two variables while Zuroff and Fitzpatrick (1995) reported a weak negative association between attachment avoidance and dependence (r = -.28 to -.17).…”

Section: Attachment and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…The construct of autonomy, on the other hand, parallels Blatt's construct of self-criticism and is characterized by undue pressure on the self in achievement related domains (Mendelson, Robins, & Johnson, 2002). As noted by Murphy and Bates (1997) Beck conceptualized that autonomy includes two aspects: "perfectionism and self-criticism one the one hand, and independence, self-reliance and avoidance of intimacy on the other. Both aspects involve excessive striving for achievement and concerns about achievement failure, but perfectionism/self-criticism apparently involves a negative self-concept, which is not necessarily inherent in independence/self-reliance" (p. 836).…”

Section: Attachment and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A sociotropic individual is similar to Blatt's (1974) construct of dependence (Blatt & Maroudas, 1992;Ouimette & Klein, 1993), and is characterized by an intense need for close interpersonal relationships. The construct of autonomy, on the other hand, is similar to Blatt's (1974) construct of self-criticism and is characterized by undue pressure on the self in achievement related domains (Mendelson, Robins, & Johnson, 2002), a need for independence, avoidance of interpersonal relationships, and perfectionism/selfcriticism (Murphy & Bates, 1997). As previously mentioned, the constructs will be referred to as dependence and self-criticism throughout this study.…”

Section: Measurement Of Depressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Adult attachment, dependence, self-criticism and depression: a test of a mediational model

Cantazaro

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Section: Attachment and Depressionsupporting

confidence: 82%

“…Empirically, Murphy and Bates (1997) and Zuroff and Fitzpatrick (1995) indicated a positive and moderate association between attachment anxiety and dependence as well as selfcriticism.…”

Section: Attachment and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Attachment and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Attachment and Depressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Measurement Of Depressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Adult attachment, dependence, self-criticism and depression: a test of a mediational model

Cantazaro

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Insecure attachment as a risk factor for psychopathology: the role of stressful events

Pielage

Gerlsma

Schaap

2000

Clin. Psychol. Psychother.

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Attachment theory predicts that attachment styles 'learned' in previous relational experiences affect the way people cope with stressful events and, consequently, their mental health. The present study tested two mediational models of the relationships between stressful events, attachment style and psychopathology in a sample of 51 student couples. No evidence was found for a mediating role of attachment style in the relationship between stressful events and psychopathology, i.e. attachment style did not influence the effects of stressful events on mental health. Rather, the results indicated that stressful events mediated the association between fearful attachment and psychopathology. It seems as though fearfully attached individuals are more prone to perceive and interpret events as stressful which in turn seems to increase their vulnerability to experience psychological symptoms. Findings are discussed in the context of theory and research on adult attachment.

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Disorganized attachment, mentalization and dissociation in context of childhood trauma: Implications for depressive symptoms

2023

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Extensive evidence indicates that adults with experience of childhood trauma and disorganised attachment are at a higher risk of suffering from depressive symptoms, while at the same time dissociation and mentalisation are very important risk and protective factors in this relation. Although mentalisation and dissociation are mentioned as potential mediators of this relationship, very few studies have analysed the mutual relations between these variables. Bearing in mind the importance of creating more specific and effective ways for dealing with depression, especially within vulnerable groups such as the traumatised, the aim of this research is to examine a serial mediation model in which disorganisation is modelled as effecting a decrease in mentalisation, in turn lead to dissociation, thereby resulting in depressive symptoms. Adult respondents (N = 153) with a history of interpersonal childhood trauma were selected from a larger geographical cluster sample from the general population of Serbia. The respondents filled in a battery of instruments, including The Childhood Traumatic Events Scale, Relationship Questionnaire -CV, Patient Health Questionnaire, Short Scale for the Assessment of Stress-Related Dissociation Symptomatology and the Mentalisation Scale. Our findings suggest that disorganisation has an effect on depression by leading to a decrease in the ability to mentalise, which further triggers dissociation, resulting in depressive symptoms as a final consequence (estimated indirect effect = 0.014, 95 percent CI = 0.005 to 0.026). Additionally, the specific indirect effect involving dissociation as the sole mediator was also significant (estimated indirect effect = 0.058, 95 percent CI = 0.030 to 0.091). Targeting dissociative symptoms in the treatment in patients struggling with depression aftermath of traumatic experience could gain a great benefit for recognition and selection of more adequate treatment strategies.

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Adult attachment style and vulnerability to depression

Cited by 157 publications

References 29 publications

Adult attachment, dependence, self-criticism and depression: a test of a mediational model

Adult attachment, dependence, self-criticism and depression: a test of a mediational model

Insecure attachment as a risk factor for psychopathology: the role of stressful events

Disorganized attachment, mentalization and dissociation in context of childhood trauma: Implications for depressive symptoms

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