Adolescent attachment and psychopathology.

Abstract

The relationships among attachment classification, psychopathology, and personality traits were examined in a group of 60 psychiatrically hospitalized adolescents. The concordance of attachment classification was examined in 27 adolescent-mother pairs. Both adolescent and maternal attachment status were overwhelmingly insecure and were highly concordant. Adolescents showing a dismissing attachment organization were more likely to have a conduct or substance abuse disorder, narcissistic or antisocial personality disorder, and self-reported narcissistic, antisocial, and paranoid personality traits. Adolescents showing a preoccupied attachment organization were more likely to have an affective disorder, obsessive-compulsive, histrionic, borderline or schizotypal personality disorder, and self-reported avoidant, anxious, and dysthymic personality traits. The results support a model of development of psychopathology based partially on relational experiences with parents.

Attachment disorders in family and social context

“…Important work has established increased risk for anxiety disorders, disruptive behavior disorders, dissociative disorders, substance use, delinquency, and personality disorders among children with insecure, and especially, disorganized attachments, to their primary caregivers (Hauser & Borman-Spurrell, 1996;Carlson, 1998;DeKlyen, 1996;Lyons-Ruth, 1996;Rosenstein & Horowitz, 1996;Warren, Huston, Egeland, & Sroufe, 1997).…”

How Do I Connect? Attachment Issues in Adolescence

“…Rosenstein and Horowitz (1996) argue that adolescents with a dismissing style as measured by the AAI were at elevated risk for narcissistic and antisocial disorders while preoccupied adolescents were associated with a broad range of personality 100 D. M. Shumaker et al disorders, including histrionic, borderline, and schizotypal. Conversely, secure attachment in adolescents can be negatively correlated with personality disorders (Nakash-Eisikovitis, Dutra, & Western, 2002).…”

“…The link between depression and insecure attachment appears similarly strong (Allen et al, 2007;Kobak, Sudler, & Gamble, 1991;Rosenstein & Horowitz, 1996). Multiple theories exist purporting to explain the relationship between insecure attachment and depression.…”

Incarcerated women: Impact of childhood sexual abuse and family functioning on dissociation and psychological distress

“…· Psychological distress, often the result of numerous symptoms manifesting themselves together, appears to have similar etiologic origins to dissociation (Barret et al, 1996;Macleod & Bryne, 1996;Rosenstein & Horowitz, 1996). Such a coexistence of dissociation and psychological distress may predict the most symptomatic CSA population.…”

“…Researchers suggest that when CSA survivors are unable to maintain dissociative barriers (Cole-Detke & Kobak, 1996;Heatherton & Baumeister, 1991;Kluft, 1993), reactive responses, such as eating disorders, panic and anxiety disorders, longterm depression, drug and alcohol use and living high-risk lifestyles often emerge (Rosenstein & Horowitz, 1996). Such responses have been described as having dissociative-like qualities and an ability to block introspective awareness (Mallinckrodt, McCreary & Robertson, 1995;Rosenstein & Horowitz, 1996;Swett & Halpert, 1993;Torem, 1986;Wilsnak, Vogeltanz, Klassen & Harris, 1996) With the numerous and problematic means by which dissociation can be triggered, maintained and compounded, psychological distress may be closely related to level of dissociative responses. Although logical deduction may lead to an assumption that a highly dissociative individual would minimally experience or be aware of anxiety and distress, it also seems reasonable to assume that the discontinuity of consciousness, produced by dissociative periods, would add to anxiety experienced before the dissociative episode.…”