Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-g8jcs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-29T08:15:14.838Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Attachment styles within sexual relationships are strategic

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2009

Douglas K. Symons
Affiliation:
Psychology Department, Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia B4P 2R6, Canada. [email protected]@dal.cahttp://ace.acadiau.ca/science/psyc/dsymons/
Alicia L. Szielasko
Affiliation:
Psychology Department, Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia B4P 2R6, Canada. [email protected]@dal.cahttp://ace.acadiau.ca/science/psyc/dsymons/

Abstract

Del Giudice's examination of sex differences in reproductive strategy within an attachment context is well taken. Sex has been studied as behavior within romantic relationships, but attachment styles should also be reflected in strategic behavior within relationships that are sexual. This seems particularly true within adolescence, and sex differences may be better reflected as differences in correlation patterns of process variables than as main effects models.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ainsworth, M. D. S. (1989) Attachments beyond infancy. American Psychologist 44:709–16.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Allen, J. P. & Land, D. (1999) Attachment in adolescence. In: Handbook of attachment: Theory, research and clinical applications, ed. Cassidy, J. & Shaver, P. R., pp. 355–77. Guilford.Google Scholar
Bartholomew, K. & Allison, C. J. (2006) An attachment perspective on abusive dynamics in intimate relationships. In: Dynamics of romantic love: Attachment, caregiving, and sex, ed. Mikulincer, M. & Goodman, G. S., pp. 71101. Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Bartholomew, K. & Horowitz, L. M. (1991) Attachment styles in young adults: A test of a four-category model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 61:226–44.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Belsky, J. (2007) Experience in childhood and the development of reproductive strategies. Acta Psychologica Scienica 39:454–68.Google Scholar
Belsky, J., Steinberg, L. & Draper, P. (1991) Childhood experience, interpersonal development, and reproductive strategy: An evolutionary theory of socialization. Child Development 62:647–70.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bowlby, J. (1969/1982) Attachment and loss. Vol. 1. Attachment, 2nd edition.Basic Books. (Original work published 1969).Google Scholar
Brennan, K. A., Clark, C. L. & Shaver, P. R. (1998) Self-report measurement of adult attachment: An integrative overview. In: Attachment theory and close relationships, ed. Simpson, J.A. & Rholes, W. S., pp. 4676. Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Brumbaugh, C. C. & Fraley, R. C. (2006) The evolution of attachment in romantic relationships. In: Dynamics of romantic love: Attachment, caregiving, and sex, ed. Mikulincer, M. & Goodman, G. S., pp. 71101. Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Butzer, B. & Campbell, L. (2008) Adult attachment, sexual satisfaction, and relationship satisfaction: A study of married couples. Personal Relationships 15:141–54.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chisholm, J. S. (1999) Death, hope and sex: Steps to an evolutionary ecology of mind and morality. Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Davis, D., Shaver, P. R. & Vernon, M. L. (2004) Attachment style and subjective motivations for sex. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 30:1076–90.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Feeney, J. A. & Noller, P. (2004) Attachment and sexuality in close relationships. In: Handbook of sexuality in close relationships, ed. Harvey, J. H., Wenzel, A. and Sprecher, S., pp. 183201. Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Feeney, J. A., Noller, P. & Patty, J. (1993) Adolescents' interactions with the opposite sex: Influence of attachment style and gender. Journal of Adolescence 16:169–89.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hazan, C., Campa, M. & Gur-Yaish, N. (2006) What is adult attachment? In: Dynamics of romantic love: Attachment, caregiving, and sex, ed. Mikulincer, M. & Goodman, G. S., pp. 4770. Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Hazan, C. & Shaver, P. R. (1987) Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 52:511–24.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kobak, R., Rosenthal, N., Zajac, K. & Madsen, S. D. (2007) Adolescent attachment hierarchies and the search for an adult pair bond. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development 117:5772.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mikulincer, M. (2006) Attachment, caregiving, and sex within romantic relationships: A behavioral systems perspective. In: Dynamics of romantic love: Attachment, caregiving, and sex, ed. Mikulincer, M. & Goodman, G. S., pp. 2346. Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Mikulincer, M. & Goodman, G. S., eds. (2006) Dynamics of romantic love: Attachment, caregiving, and sex. Guilford Press.Google Scholar
O'Connor, T. G. & Byrne, J. G. (2007) Attachment measures for research and practice. Child and Adolescent Mental Health 12:187–92.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Szielasko, A. L., Symons, D. K. & Price, L. (2007) The role of attachment in adolescent sexual risk-taking. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the Canadian Psychological AssociationOttawa, Ontario, 2007.Google Scholar
Szielasko, A. L., Symons, D. K. & Price, E. L. (under review) Attachment styles in sexual and romantic relationships predict invasive sexual behaviors and approaches.Google Scholar