Adult attachment style refers to individual personality traits that strongly influence emotional bonds and reactions to social partners. Behavioral research has shown that adult attachment style reflects profound differences in sensitivity to social signals of support or conflict, but the neural substrates underlying such differences remain unsettled. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging...

Background We investigated mother–child relationships and self-esteem of typical children of mothers with intellectual disability. Methods Eighteen girls and 18 boys from various ethnic groups were administered questionnaires to assess: (a) attachment style; (b) caregiver style; (c) perception of maternal stigma; and (d) self-esteem. The children were also asked to list the identities or roles ...

Theorized associations between adverse attachment experience, maladaptive core schema (EMS) and the interpersonal dysfunction seen as characteristic of borderline personality disorder were investigated in two groups of outpatient youth aged between 15 and 25 years. Patients with sub‐syndromal (meeting at least 3 DSM‐IV criteria) and full syndrome BPD (n = 30) and patients with major depressive ...

Background: Researches on attachment theory shows that attachment styles influence marital adjustment. However, some psychological factors moderate this correlation. The present study was aimed to examine the moderating role of defense mechanisms in the association between attachment styles and levels of marital adjustment. Methods: This descriptive-correlational study collected data from a co...

Objectives. Doctors' empathy towards their patients is considered important for treatment outcome. However, during medical school there might be a decline in empathy called "hardening of the heart." This study evaluated the cognitive and emotional empathy in medical students and investigated the influence of a preference for a specialty and students attachment styles. Methods. 126 first-year me...

BACKGROUND Recent research has documented the association between attachment and cortisol rhythms. During pregnancy, when attachment patterns are likely to be activated, elevated levels of cortisol are associated with negative effects for the mother and the foetus. The aim of the present study was to examine the association of adult attachment style and cortisol rhythms in pregnant women. MET...

Insecure attachment style is associated with poor health outcomes. A proposed pathway implicates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA-axis), dysregulation of which is associated with a wide range of mental and physical ill-health. However, data on stress reactivity in relation to attachment style is contradictory. This relationship was examined using the novel Trier Social Stress Test f...