Insecure Attachment to God and Interpersonal Conflict

Research has expanded the notion of attachment to caregivers to other figures such as God, and there is now literature supporting positive effects of attachment to God with various psychosocial outcomes. The dimensions of attachment to God—anxiety and avoidance—reflect varying ways that people see God as supportive and reliable versus unsupportive and inconsistent. As a stable aspect of the individual, attachment to God results in recurring patterns of interpersonal behavior that can maintain and support self-control or disrupt it. No studies have examined the moderating effect of attachment to God on the relationship between self-control and negative social exchanges. To fill this gap, a sample of 1049 adults across the United States completed measures on attachment to God, self-control, and interpersonal outcomes. First, results showed that insecure attachment to God is associated with a hostile-dominant interpersonal style. Second, it was found that the highest level of negative social exchanges occurred in individuals low in self-control and high in attachment avoidance and anxiety. Results are discussed in terms of self-regulation, stress exposure, and situation selection. An implication of the current study is that secure attachment to God may foster less stress exposure by influencing a person’s situation selection.

The Positive Side of Negative Interactions: Anxious and Avoidant Attachment as Moderators

Although research has historically focused on the positive aspects of social ties, relationships inevitably involve a combination of positive as well as negative interactions. For the present study, we conducted a series of hierarchical linear regressions using longitudinal data from 108 first-year college students to test whether attachment anxiety and avoidance acted as moderators of the association between positive and negative social exchanges (assessed with the PANSE; Newsom et al., 2005) and changes in life satisfaction across the first year of college. We found that for individuals high on attachment avoidance or attachment anxiety, negative social exchanges were associated with increases in life satisfaction. In addition, whereas positive exchanges were associated with increases in life satisfaction among participants low on attachment avoidance, they were associated with decreases in life satisfaction among participants high on avoidance. Follow-up analyses using the subscales of the PANSE revealed the specific types of positive and negative exchanges driving these associations. Our findings highlight the relevance of attachment for understanding the role of social exchanges during the college transition.

THE IMPACT OF NEGATIVE SOCIAL EXCHANGES ON ADULT PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH

As some health components may change across adulthood (CDC, 2019), social support for aging adults may be one way to optimize physical and mental health (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018). When social encounters are negative, however, physical and mental health may be negatively affected (Chen & Feeley, 2013; Hawkley & Cacioppo, 2010). Negative social exchanges (NSE) have been linked to an increase in negative affect and a decrease in positive affect (Newsom et al., 2003), along with an increase in physical symptoms (Edwards et al., 2001). In order to examine the relations between age, NSE, and two components of health (chronic health conditions and mental health) two moderated regression analyses were conducted using data from 848 adults (Mage = 32.5 years). Studying chronic health conditions, the overall model was significant, [F(3, 838) = 40.31, p < .001; R2 = .36]. Significant main effects emerged for NSE and age, along with a significant interaction between age and NSE (b = 0.010, p < 0.05). As NSE increased, the number of chronic health conditions increased, especially for older adults. For mental health, the overall model was significant [F(3, 845) = 52.96, p < .001; R2 = 0.16]. A significant main effect emerged for NSE, but neither the main effect for age nor the interaction were significant. Thus, although NSE can have deleterious effects on both mental and physical health, special attention needs to focus on the physical health of older adults who experience a higher number of NSE.

Positive and negative social exchanges experienced by fathers and mothers of children with autism

When faced with child-related challenges associated with autism spectrum disorder, positive and negative social exchanges may be critical to parents’ psychological well-being. This study examined the types and sources of positive and negative social exchanges reported by mothers and fathers of children with autism spectrum disorder and their association with parental depressive symptoms in 176 families of children (5–12 years; 85% male) with autism spectrum disorder. One-way repeated measure multivariate analyses of variance and multilevel modeling were used. Results indicated that informational was the most frequent type, and one’s spouse was the primary source, of both positive and negative social exchanges. Fathers reported fewer positive, and also fewer negative, social exchanges with family, friends, and health professionals than mothers. Positive and negative social exchanges with one’s spouse were most strongly associated with depressive symptoms. Findings have implications for interventions designed to foster optimal outcomes in families of children with autism spectrum disorder.