Being in the Moment So You Can Keep Moving Forward: Mindfulness and Rumination Mediate the Relationship between Attachment Orientations and Negative Conflict Styles

Abstract

Attachment insecurity has been associated with negative behaviors during conflict and decreased relationship satisfaction. We theorize that individuals high in attachment anxiety and/or avoidance are less mindful during conflict with their romantic partners, and thus more likely to ruminate. Decreased mindfulness and higher levels of rumination may be important mechanisms in the relationship between attachment insecurity and conflict behavior, as it may be more difficult to engage in constructive problem-solving skills when one is distracted from the present moment. We conducted an online survey assessing 360 participants’ attachment orientations, levels of mindfulness and rumination, behavior during conflict, and experience with mindfulness activities. Using a serial mediation model, we found that mindfulness and rumination mediated the relationship between attachment insecurity and negative conflict behaviors. We further discovered that individuals high in attachment insecurity were more likely to report negative experiences with mindfulness activities (i.e., meditation and yoga), and that this relationship was mediated by higher levels of experiential avoidance, or a fear of engaging with one’s own thoughts and feelings. We discuss the importance of increasing mindfulness and decreasing both rumination and experiential avoidance to assist individuals high in attachment insecurity in navigating relationship conflict using more constructive and relationship-promoting strategies.

Subjective and neural reactivity during savoring and rumination

“…In many disorders in which negative rumination is a detrimental symptom (e.g., attachment disorders, binge eating disorders, depression, etc. ), treatments include steps to decrease negative ruminatory tendencies (Dingemans et al, 2017 ; Li et al, 2018a ; Quickert and MacDonald, 2020 ). If positive and negative repetitive thinking are linked, the effectiveness of and compliance with such strategies may be partially dependent upon an individual’s trait repetitive thinking patterns.…”

Underlying Role of Rumination-Mediated Attachment Style Plays in PTSD after TIA and Stroke

“…Such research has shown that attachment and rumination were strongly and predictively associated with PTSD. Researchers have further discovered that rumination is a mediator of attachment to physical health and emotional regulation [ 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]. However, these associations were estimated in a general population, and whether this association still exists in patients suffering from TIA or stroke was ambiguous.…”

Adult Attachment, Conflict Resolution Style and Relationship Quality among Spanish Young-adult Couples

“…Besides, research in this area presents other limitations that should be considered. First, many studies only examine one member of the relationship dyad (e.g., Bogda & Sendil, 2012;Monteoliva et al, 2005;Pistole & Arricale, 2003;Quickert & MacDonald, 2020;Rivera et al, 2011) instead of both (e.g., Creasey, 2002;Molero et al, 2011) although conflict-resolution styles and relationship satisfaction are likely to be influenced not only by individuals' own characteristics and inputs, but also by their partner's. This is generally due to difficulties associated with sample recruitment (Bretz, 2009) and might thus partly explain the lack of clarity and consistency in results, together with the different data collection instruments and the different age range of participants across studies.…”

“…Furthermore, this evidence is generally obtained from small-size samples of individuals (e.g., Bonache et al, 2019;Du Plessis, 2006;MacDonald et al, 2019;Pistole & Arricale, 2003) or couples (e.g., Bretz, 2009;Creasey, 2002;Guzmán & Contreras, 2012) -in the latter case, samples rarely exceed several hundred-, and participants are often of a wide age range (e.g., da Costa & Mosmann, 2020;Heresi et al, 2014;Paquette et al, 2020;Quickert & MacDonald, 2020;Scheeren et al, 2014), which hinders the extrapolation of results to emerging adults.…”