Recalling an Attachment Event Moderates Distress after Ostracism

Abstract

Ostracism is known to cause psychological distress. Studies have indicated that immediate distress is resistant to individual differences and situational factors, but delayed reactions are more sensitive to moderation. Because attachment orientation is inextricably tied to rejection and inclusion, we hypothesized that attachment orientation would moderate both immediate and delayed ostracism effects and that recalling an attachment event compatible with a person's attachment internal working model would moderate the distress of a laboratory ostracism experience. In two experiments, 158 individualistic (secular Jewish) and 190 collectivistic (ultra-Orthodox Jewish) participants played Cyberball with two other ostensible in-group players. Distress was measured immediately after the game and 30 minutes later. The results show that less anxious and more avoidant individualistic but not collectivistic participants were less distressed by ostracism. After the delay, recall of an attachment event compatible with the participants' internal working model eliminated distress in both individualistic and collectivistic ostracized participants as measured on the needs satisfaction scale. Among individualistic participants, avoidants, who are known to avoid meaningful attachments, were less distressed by ostracism; anxious participants, who seek proximity, were more distressed. Recalling a compatible attachment event may be a mechanism that reduces individuals' perceptions of threats to their fundamental needs.

Fear of death mediates ostracism distress and the moderating role of attachment internal working models

“…The findings also extend previous work on the moderating role of attachment orientations on ostracism (Arriaga et al, 2014;Yaakobi & Williams, 2016a, 2016b. This may suggest that the denial and suppression explanation could underlie the effects for anxious individuals found here.…”

“…Attachment anxiety was also associated with low needs satisfaction in a sample of highly committed couples (Arriaga et al, 2014) when either ostracized or included. Moreover, avoidant and anxious attachment moderated these ostracism effects in two diverse cultures (Yaakobi & Williams, 2016a, 2016b. In a different study, attachment anxiety and avoidance were shown to moderate the negative effects of ostracism; specifically, recalling an attachment event that was consistent with one's attachment internal working model moderated the negative effects of ostracism and led to less reduction in participants' needs satisfaction after being ostracized (Yaakobi & Williams, 2016b).…”

“…However, avoidance was not found to be related to needs satisfaction in the ostracized group. Furthermore, more anxious individuals were more affected immediately after being ostracized than less anxious individuals (Yaakobi & Williams, 2016b). Moreover, avoidant and anxious attachment moderated these ostracism effects in two diverse cultures (Yaakobi & Williams, 2016a, 2016b.…”

“…Attachment anxiety was only significantly associated with lower immediate meaning scores in the ostracism condition. In a different study, attachment anxiety and avoidance were shown to moderate the negative effects of ostracism; specifically, recalling an attachment event that was consistent with one's attachment internal working model moderated the negative effects of ostracism and led to less reduction in participants' needs satisfaction after being ostracized (Yaakobi & Williams, 2016b). However, avoidance was not found to be related to needs satisfaction in the ostracized group.…”

“…Recently, attachment orientations have been reported to moderate reactions to ostracism as well (Arriaga, Capezza, Reed, Wesselmann, & Williams, 2014;Shaver & Mikulincer, 2013;Yaakobi & Williams, 2016a, 2016b. In a preliminary study, Shaver and Mikulincer (2013) showed that ostracized participants had lower scores on an immediate sense of meaning questionnaire when attachment anxiety was high, but not when it was relatively low.…”