scholarly journals Investigating the Interpersonal Dynamics Between Coaches and Athletes Based on Fundamental Principles of Attachment

2010 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 112-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Davis ◽  
Sophia Jowett

Grounded in Bowlby’s (1969/1982, 1988) attachment theory, this study aimed to explore (a) the pervasiveness of the three main functions of attachment within the context of the coach-athlete relationship, (b) the associations of athletes’ attachment styles with such important variables as satisfaction with the relationship and satisfaction with the sport, and (c) the process by which athletes’ attachment styles and satisfaction with sport are associated. Data were collected through self-report measures of attachment functions and styles as well as relationship satisfaction and sport satisfaction from 309 student athletes (males = 150, females = 159) whose age ranged from 18 to 28 years (Mage = 19.9, SD = 1.58 years). Athletes’ mean scores indicated that the coach was viewed as an attachment figure fulfilling all three functions of secure base, safe haven, and proximity maintenance. Bivariate correlations indicated that athletes’ avoidant and anxious styles of attachment with the coach were negatively correlated with both relationship satisfaction and sport satisfaction. Mediational regression analysis revealed that athletes’ satisfaction with the coach-athlete relationship may be a process that links athletes’ attachment styles with levels of satisfaction with sport. The findings from this study highlight the potential theoretical and practical utility of attachment theory in studying relationships within the sport context.

2014 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Mathews ◽  
J. Onwumere ◽  
S. Bissoli ◽  
M. Ruggeri ◽  
E. Kuipers ◽  
...  

Background.Attachment theory proposes that psychological functioning and affect regulations are influenced by the attachment we form with others. Early relationships with parents or caregivers lay the foundations for attachment styles. These styles are proposed to influence how we relate to others during our life can be modified by the relationships and events we experience in our lifespan. A secure attachment style is associated with a capacity to manage distress, comfort with autonomy and the ability to form relationships with others, whereas insecure attachment can lead to dysfunctional relationships, emotional and behaviour avoidance. Attachment theory provides a useful framework to inform our understanding of relationship difficulties in people with psychosis. This paper aims to complement recent systematic reviews by providing an overview of attachment theory, its application to psychosis, including an understanding of measurement issues and the clinical implications offered.Method.A narrative review was completed of the measures of attachment and parental bonding in psychosis. Its clinical implications are also discussed. The paper also explores the link between insecure attachment styles and illness course, social functioning and symptomatology. The following questions are addressed: What are the key attachment measures that have been used within the attachment and psychosis literature? What are the results of studies that have measured attachment or parental bonding in psychosis and what clinical implications can we derive from it? What are some of the key questions for future research from these findings in relation to the onset of psychosis research field?Results.The most commonly used measures of attachment in psychosis research are reviewed. Self-report questionnaires and semi-structured interviews have mainly been used to examine attachment styles in adult samples and in recent years comprise a measure specifically developed for a psychosis group. The review suggests that insecure attachment styles are common in psychosis samples. Key relationships were observed between insecure, avoidant and anxious attachment styles and psychosis development, expression and long-term outcome.Conclusions.Attachment theory can provide a useful framework to facilitate our understanding of interpersonal difficulties in psychosis that may predate its onset and impact on observed variability in outcomes, including treatment engagement. Greater attention should be given to the assessment of attachment needs and to the development of interventions that seek to compensate for these difficulties. However, further investigations are required on specifying the exact mechanisms by which specific attachment styles impact on the development of psychosis and its course.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-S16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elliott Christian ◽  
Martin Sellbom ◽  
Ross B. Wilkinson

In the current investigation, we examined the association between psychopathy and attachment styles in several specific attachment relationships (i.e., romantic, mother, father, friend). Data were collected online from a combination of Australian university and general community samples (N = 729, 53.50% female) using the Expanded Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy scale (Christian & Sellbom, 2016) and a modified version of the Experiences in Close Relationships Structures (Fraley, Heffernan, Vicary, & Brumbaugh, 2011). Our results revealed that specific attachment models tend to have small to moderate associations with the components of psychopathy, but that the strength and direction of these associations tends to differ between figures, components of psychopathy, and dimension of attachment considered. Interestingly, it appeared that peer relationships (i.e., romantic, friend) tended to account for the majority of the variance in the relationship between psychopathy and general attachment styles, which may be an important avenue for future research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicia Limke-McLean

AbstractThis study examined attachment styles, online behaviours, offline relationships, and sexuality of individuals engaged in a popular massive multiplayer online (MMO) game (Game of War: Fire Age). 178 players currently involved in romantic relationships completed surveys for in-game currency. Time spent gaming predicted less time with others, less relationship satisfaction, more relationship uncertainty, more sexual anxiety, and more external sexual control. However, attachment avoidance partially mediated the relationship between time spent online gaming and time spent with immediate family and friends; relationship satisfaction; self-partner, and relationship uncertainty; sexual anxiety; and external sexual control.


1993 ◽  
Vol 163 (4) ◽  
pp. 430-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeremy Holmes

John Bowlby bemoaned the separation between the biological and psychological approaches in psychiatry, and hoped that attachment theory, which brings together psychoanalysis and the science of ethology, would help bridge the rift between them. Recent findings in developmental psychology have delineated features of parent–infant interaction, especially responsiveness, attunement, and modulation of affect, which lead to either secure or insecure attachment. Similar principles can be applied to the relationship between psychotherapist and patient - the provision of a secure base, the emergence of a shared narrative (‘autobiographical competence’), the processing of affect, coping with loss - these are common to most effective psychotherapies and provide the basis for a new interpersonal paradigm within psychotherapy. Attachment theory suggests they rest on a sound ethological and hence biological foundation.


2008 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnie Cann ◽  
M. Ashley Norman ◽  
Jennifer L. Welbourne ◽  
Lawrence G. Calhoun

Relationships among attachment styles, conflict styles and humour styles were examined in the context of romantic relationships. Each style was assumed to be based upon underlying assumptions about self and others, so relationships among the measures were predicted. A model assuming that the relationship of attachment styles to relationship satisfaction was partially mediated by the conflict styles and humour styles was tested. Overall, the predicted relationships among the three measures were supported. Conflict styles and humour styles reflecting attitudes about others were related to the avoidance attachment style, while those reflecting attitudes about the self were related to the anxiety attachment dimension. Conflict styles and humour styles were mediators of the association of attachment style with relationship satisfaction. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


1997 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 1007-1010 ◽  
Author(s):  
James W. Grice

20 married couples completed the relationship version of the Perceived Understanding Instrument, four face-valid items written to assess perceived understanding, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Pearson correlations indicated that scores on the Perceived Understanding Instrument were as highly related to those on the four subscales of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale as to the sum of the four face-valid items. These findings suggest that the Perceived Understanding Instrument lacks discriminant validity and may be confounded with other factors such as relationship satisfaction. A more thorough review of its validity is thus needed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-71
Author(s):  
Fatahyah Yahya ◽  
Aqilah Yusoff ◽  
Ahmad Tarmizi Talib ◽  
Sarjit Singh Darshan Singh ◽  
Abdul Hakim Mohad ◽  
...  

The research was aimed to study the relationship between attachment styles and marital quality between spouses. A total number of 52 spouses representing teachers from Sekolah Menengah Agama Daeratul Ma'arifil Wataniah 1 (SMA DMW 1), in Peninsular Malaysia's northwest coast, participated in this study. There were two sets of questionnaires used in this study: Experience in Close Relationship (ECR) and Marital Adjustment Test (MAT). The results showed that there was a significant relationship between attachment styles and spouses' styles. However, there is no relationship between marital satisfaction among spouses, and there is also no relationship between attachment styles and marital satisfaction among spouses. Future research is suggested to enhance the research by moving beyond self-report instruments to develop alternative methods of assessment as some of the questions should be more specifically suitable in Malaysian culture.  


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleni Rizou ◽  
Vaitsa Giannouli

Therapeutic Relationship has been regarded as a profound element of the psychotherapeutic procedure and crucial for the outcome of therapy. Research evidence so far claims that both therapist’s and client’s personality can impact the Therapeutic Relationship. Based on the well-researched Attachment Theory there has been some research mostly focused on how clients’ attachment patterns can affect the Alliance. Limited research, though, on how therapists experience the Relationship in relation with their Attachment Styles do exist. The current study investigates trainee therapists’ experience of the Therapeutic Relationship in the light of their Attachment Style. A qualitative approach was used for this research to investigate in depth the experience of five trainee Integrative psychotherapists who were recruited to take part in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were transcribed and verbatim was divided into superordinate and subordinate themes and analyzed by Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis method. Four master themes were identified. Findings were then compared and discussed according to existing literature. All participants referred to the relevance of Attachment Theory in psychotherapy. They also agreed on the activation of their Attachment Styles during the therapeutic process. The securely attached therapist confirms previous studies on her capability to offer a secure base for her clients. On the other hand therapists with insecure Attachment Styles appeared sensitive in their collaboration mostly with insecure clients. Anxiously attached therapists proved to experience difficulty in the initial stages of the Therapeutic Relationship while the combination of avoidant therapist-avoidant client appeared to be the most demanding one, regarding the concept of trust and relationship ruptures. We suggest that the exploration of trainee therapists’ Attachment Styles as well as the study of the Attachment Theory should be added to all Counseling and Psychotherapy curricula regardless the therapeutic orientation because of its contribution to forming positive Therapeutic Relationships.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-30
Author(s):  
Danica J. Kulibert ◽  
Elle A. Moore ◽  
Melinda M. Dertinger ◽  
Ashley E. Thompson

Although romantic kissing is an important part of relationship functioning, little research has focused on motives for romantic kissing and how they may relate to other aspects of romantic relationships. To understand how romantic kissing impacts romantic relationship functioning, the current study assessed the relationship between romantic attachment, romantic kissing motives, and relationship satisfaction. Overall, it was hypothesized that (a) those reporting more sexual/explicit kissing motives and fewer goal attainment/insecurity motives would report higher relationship satisfaction, (b) those reporting a more secure attachment style would report higher relationship satisfaction, and (c) the relationship between romantic kissing motives and relationship satisfaction would vary according to one’s romantic attachment styles. Results from a hierarchical linear regression with 286 adults, all of whom were currently in romantic relationships, revealed that sexual/relational (β = 0.25) and goal attainment/insecurity kissing motives (β = -0.35) predicted relationship satisfaction. However, the impact of kissing motives on relationship satisfaction varied according to one’s romantic attachment. Specifically, the influence of sexual/relational motives was only significant for avoidantly attached individuals, whereas the influence of goal attainment/insecurity motives was significant for avoidantly and anxiously attachment individuals. Overall, this suggests that sexual/explicit romantic kissing motives serve to enhance the relationships of insecurely attached individuals, but not securely attached individuals. Furthermore, goal attainment/insecure motives had a negative effect on the relationship satisfaction of insecurely attached individuals, but not securely attached individuals. This study has important implications for both practitioners working with romantic couples and researchers studying romantic relationships.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Lisá ◽  
Katarína Greškovičová ◽  
Katarina Krizova

AbstractThe study aimed to explore the perception of the leader as a security provider as a potential mediator of the relationship between work engagement and perceived general and citizenship work performance. Five hundred and forty-two adults completed the Leader as a security provider scale, Utrecht work engagement scale, General work performance questionnaire, and Citizenship organizational behavior questionnaire to self-report on their organizational behaviors. The perception of the leader as a secure attachment figure partially mediated loyalty and adherence to the organization's rules in engaged employees. Perceived separation distress can increase interpersonal citizenship performance; however, it can decrease organizational compliance in engaged employees. Fear of losing the leader can potentially harm the organizational goals by favoring the personal relationships before organizational compliance.


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