TY - JOUR
T1 - Adult attachment style and anxiety
T2 - The mediating role of emotion regulation
AU - Nielsen, Sara Kerstine Kaya
AU - Lønfeldt, Nicole Nadine
AU - Wolitzky-Taylor, Kate
AU - Hageman, Ida
AU - Vangkilde, Signe
AU - Daniel, Sarah Ingrid Franksdatter
PY - 2017/8/15
Y1 - 2017/8/15
N2 - Background Although there is substantial evidence for the role of emotion regulation in the etiology and maintenance of anxiety disorders, knowledge about what contributes to emotion dysregulation is sparse. Attachment style is related to emotion regulation and anxiety symptoms, but these variables have rarely been examined together. Examining emotion dysregulation within the context of anxiety disorders through an attachment theory framework will lead to a better understanding of the etiology and maintenance of anxiety disorders. In the present study we combined theoretically and empirically derived knowledge to examine the mediating role of emotion regulation between attachment dimensions (avoidance and anxiety) and anxiety symptoms. Methods A total of 147 individuals were assessed with Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised (ECR-R) and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), and statistical mediation analyses were conducted. Results Our results indicate that the significant association between anxiety and attachment anxiety was mediated by emotion dysregulation, whereas attachment avoidance was not significantly related to anxiety when covarying for attachment anxiety. The primary limitation of our study is that data is cross-sectional and so causation cannot be inferred. Secondly, all measures used in this study were derived from self-reported questionnaires, which may be more susceptible to bias. Conclusions Our results suggest that it is not insecure attachment in general that is important in anxiety disorders, but that attachment anxiety is specifically relevant. Thus, clinical interventions for anxiety disorders may improve by targeting attachment related difficulties.
AB - Background Although there is substantial evidence for the role of emotion regulation in the etiology and maintenance of anxiety disorders, knowledge about what contributes to emotion dysregulation is sparse. Attachment style is related to emotion regulation and anxiety symptoms, but these variables have rarely been examined together. Examining emotion dysregulation within the context of anxiety disorders through an attachment theory framework will lead to a better understanding of the etiology and maintenance of anxiety disorders. In the present study we combined theoretically and empirically derived knowledge to examine the mediating role of emotion regulation between attachment dimensions (avoidance and anxiety) and anxiety symptoms. Methods A total of 147 individuals were assessed with Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised (ECR-R) and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), and statistical mediation analyses were conducted. Results Our results indicate that the significant association between anxiety and attachment anxiety was mediated by emotion dysregulation, whereas attachment avoidance was not significantly related to anxiety when covarying for attachment anxiety. The primary limitation of our study is that data is cross-sectional and so causation cannot be inferred. Secondly, all measures used in this study were derived from self-reported questionnaires, which may be more susceptible to bias. Conclusions Our results suggest that it is not insecure attachment in general that is important in anxiety disorders, but that attachment anxiety is specifically relevant. Thus, clinical interventions for anxiety disorders may improve by targeting attachment related difficulties.
KW - Faculty of Social Sciences
KW - Anxiety Disorders
KW - Mediation
KW - Attachment
KW - Emotion Regulation
KW - Anxiety Disorders
KW - Adult attachment style
KW - Emotion Regulation
KW - Mediation analysis
U2 - 10.1016/j.jad.2017.04.047
DO - 10.1016/j.jad.2017.04.047
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 28477504
SN - 0165-0327
VL - 218
SP - 253
EP - 259
JO - Journal of Affective Disorders
JF - Journal of Affective Disorders
ER -