The attachment patterns of younger and older adults were studied using two-dimensional self-report measures of adult attachment. Community-dwelling younger (n = 144, M = 22.5 years, SD = 3.6) and older (n = 106, M = 68.6 years, SD = 8.3) adults completed the Measure of Attachment Qualities (MAQ; Carver, 1997) and the Relationship Style Questionnaire (RSQ; Griffin & Bartholomew, 1994). Although the MAQ and RSQ are believed to be measuring similar constructs, they are derived from different theoretical perspectives. Correlations between the two measures were in the expected directions proving modest evidence for their convergent validity. Regarding cross-sectional results, as was expected, older adults scored lower than younger adults on the ambivalent-worry attachment scale of the MAQ and the preoccupied attachment scale of the RSQ. There were no age differences regarding secure, avoidant, and dismissing attachment. It appears that older adults experience anxious types of attachment less frequently than younger adults. Although these results primarily speak to age differences and possible cohort effects, they also provide some support for socioemotional selectivity theory and its hypothesized improved relationships in later life.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AntonucciT. C. (1994). Attachment in adulthood and aging. In SperlingM. B. & BermanW. H. (Eds.), Attachment in adults: Clinical and developmental perspectives (pp. 256–272). New York: Guilford.
2.
BartholomewK., & ShaverP. R. (1998). Methods of assessing adult attachment: Do they converge? In SimpsonJ. A. & RholesW. S. (Eds.), Attachment theory and close relationships (pp. 25–45). New York: Guilford.
3.
BartholomewK., & HorowitzL. M. (1991). Attachment styles among young adults: A test of a four-category model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 61, 226–244.
4.
BowlbyJ. (1969/1982). Attachment and loss: Vol. 1. Attachment (2nd ed.). New York: Basic Books.
5.
BowlbyJ. (1973). Attachment and loss: Vol. 2. Separation: Anxiety and anger. New York: Basic Books.
6.
BowlbyJ. (1980). Attachment and loss: Vol. 3. Loss, sadness, and depression. New York: Basic Books.
7.
BradleyJ. M., & CaffertyT. P. (2001). Attachment among older adults: Current issues and directions for future research. Attachment & Human Development, 3, 200–221.
8.
BradleyJ. M., & PalmerG. (2003). Attachment in later life: Implications for intervention with older adults. Attachment processes in couple and family therapy (pp. 281–299). New York: Guilford.
9.
BrennanK. A.ClarkC. L., & ShaverP. R. (1998). Self-report measurement of adult attachment: An integrative overview. In SimpsonJ. A. & RholesW. S. (Eds.), Attachment theory and close relationships (pp. 46–76). New York: Guilford.
10.
BrethertonI., & MunhollandK. A. (1999). Internal working models in attachment relationships: A construct revisited. In CassidyJ. & ShaverP. R. (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical implications (pp. 89–111). New York: Guilford.
11.
CarlsonE. A.SroufeL. A., & EgelandB. (2004). The construction of experience: A longitudinal study of representation and behavior. Child Development, 75, 66–83.
12.
CarstensenL. L.IsaacowitzD. M., & CharlesS. T. (1999). Taking time seriously: A theory of socioemotional selectivity. American Psychologist, 54, 165–181.
13.
CarstensenL. L., & Turk-CharlesS. (1994). The salience of emotion across the adult life span. Psychology and Aging, 9, 259–264.
14.
CarverC. S. (1997). Adult attachment and personality: Converging evidence and a new measure. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 865–883.
15.
ChestonR.ThorneK.WhitbyP., & PeakJ. (2007). Simulated presence therapy, attachment and separation amongst people with dementia. Dementia: The International Journal of Social Research and Practice, 6, 442–449.
16.
ColeM. (2005). Culture in development. In BornsteinM. H. & LambM. E. (Eds.), Developmental psychology: An advanced textbook (5th ed.; pp. 45–101). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
17.
CollinsN. L., & ReadS. J. (1990). Adult attachment, working models, and relationship quality in dating couples. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 644–663.
18.
DiehlM.ElnickA. B.BourbeasuL. S., & Labouvie-ViefG. (1998). Adult attachment styles: Their relations to family context and personality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1656–1669.
19.
FraleyR. C., & WallerN. G. (1998). Adult attachment patterns: A test of the typo-logical model. In SimpsonJ. A. & RholesW. S. (Eds.), Attachment theory and close relationships (pp. 77–114). New York: Guilford.
20.
GriffinD. W., & BartholomewK. (1994). Models of the self and other: Fundamental dimension underlying measures of adult attachment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 430–445.
21.
HazanC., & ShaverP. R. (1987). Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52, 511–524.
22.
JesteD. V.AlexopoulosG. S.BartelsS. J.CummingsJ. L.GalloJ. J.GottliebG. L. (1999). Consensus statement on the upcoming crisis in geriatric mental health: Research agenda for the next 2 decades. Archives of General Psychiatry, 56, 848–853.
23.
KlohnenE. C., & BeraS. (1998). Behavioral and experiential patterns of avoidantly and securely attached women across adulthood: A 31-year longitudinal perspective. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 211–223.
24.
MagaiC., & CohenC. I. (1998). Attachment style and emotion regulation in dementia patients and their relation to caregiver burden. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 53B, 147–154.
25.
MagaiC.CohenC.MilburnN.ThorpeB.McPhersonR., & PeraltaD. (2001). Attachment styles in older European American and African American Adults. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 56B, 28–35.
26.
MagaiC., & PassmanV. (1997). The interpersonal basis of emotional behaviour and emotion regulation in adulthood. In LawtonM. P. & SchaieK. W. (Eds.), Annual review of gerontology and geriatrics (Vol. 17, pp. 104–137). New York: Springer.
27.
MagaiC.ConsedineN. S.GillespieM.O'NealC., & VilkerR. (2004). The differential roles of early emotion socialization and adult attachment in adult emotional experience: Testing a mediator hypothesis. Attachment & Human Development, 6, 389–417.
28.
MickelsonK. D.KesslerR. C., & ShaverP. R. (1997). Adult attachment in a nationally representative sample. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1092–1106.
29.
MolinariV.CullyJ. A.KendjelicE. M., & KunikM. E. (2001). Reminiscence and its relationship to attachment and personality in geropsychiatric patients. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 52, 173–184.
RoismanG.PadrónE.SroufeL. A., & EgelandB. (2002). Earned-secure attachment status in retrospect and prospect. Child Development, 73, 1204–1219.
32.
SegalD. L.CoolidgeF. L., & MizunoH. (2007). Defense mechanism differences between younger and older adults: A cross-sectional investigation. Aging and Mental Health, 11, 415–422.
33.
SegalD. L.HookJ. N., & CoolidgeF. L. (2001). Personality dysfunction, coping styles, and clinical symptoms in younger and older adults. Journal of Clinical Geropsychology, 7, 201–212.
34.
SroufeA. L.EgelandB.CarlsonE., & CollinsA. (2005). Placing early attachment experiences in developmental context: The Minnesota longitudinal study. In GrossmannK. E.GrossmanK., & WatersE. (Eds.), Attachment from infancy to adulthood: The major longitudinal studies (pp. 48–70). New York: Guilford.
35.
SteeleH.PhibbsE., & WoodsR. T. (2004). Coherence of mind in daughter caregivers of mothers with dementia: Links with their mothers' joy and relatedness on reunion in a strange situation. Attachment & Human Development, 6, 439–450.
36.
WebsterJ. D. (1997). Attachment style and well-being in elderly adults: A preliminary investigation. Canadian Journal on Aging, 16, 101–111.
37.
WebsterJ. D. (1998). Attachment styles, reminiscence, and happiness in young and elderly adults. Journal of Aging Studies, 12, 315–330.
38.
ZhangF., & Labouvie-ViefG. (2004). Stability and fluctuation in adult attachment style over a 6-year period. Attachment & Human Development, 6, 419–437.
