Attachment Styles and Quality of Romantic and Family Relationship in a French Population of Young Adults: the Mediating Role of Trait-mindfulness

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Attachment Styles and Quality of Romantic and Family Relationship in a French Population of Young Adults: the Mediating Role of Trait-mindfulness

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3249417/v1

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Although the literature has shown that attachment and mindfulness are related to relationship quality, their cumulative effect remains unclear. This study aims to understand the impact of mindfulness on the relationship between parental and adult attachment styles and the quality of relationships with parents and romantic partners in young adults.

Data were collected on 195 first-year psychology students not experts in mindfulness.

Structural equation models showed that trait mindfulness mediated the relationship between adult attachment and romantic relationship quality. Adult attachment had an indirect effect on the quality of romantic relationships. Mindfulness played an important mediating role as it was significantly associated with romantic relationships quality regardless of the nature of attachment. Only parental attachment was a predictor of quality of parental relationship. These results show that the more secure the attachment to the parents, the better the quality of the relationship with them in adulthood, while in romantic partners mindfulness plays a role in relationship quality.

Therefore, interventions that develop trait mindfulness could be effective in increasing ability of young adults to have more satisfying relationships with their romantic partner. Interventions promoting the development of secure attachment would be the most suitable to improve quality of family relationships.

Biological sciences/Psychology/Human behaviour

Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Emotion

mindfulness

anxious attachment

avoidant attachment

parental attachment

relationship quality

Young adults are characterized by the fact that they are no longer in the period of adolescence, but still in a transition phase towards adulthood. They are therefore undergoing major changes, particularly in their relationships with their parents and with romantic partners. The link between attachment and the quality of interpersonal relationships has been widely documented, and a positive association between attachment security and good relationship quality has been widely shown in the literature (Berlin, Cassidy, & Appleyard, 2008). The study of the effects of mindfulness on the quality of interpersonal relationships has grown rapidly over the last fifteen years. The results point to a positive association between high levels of mindfulness and satisfactory relationship quality (McGill et al., 2016). Moreover, it seems that mindfulness and attachment are also linked. The current study aimed at better understanding the unique and combined roles of mindfulness and attachment in predicting relationship quality with parents and with romantic partners.

1.2. Attachment and the quality of interpersonal relationships

Attachment is constructed from birth and corresponds to the affective bond that develops between the infant and the parent or any other person taking care of the child during the first years of life (Bowlby, 1977). Some authors hypothesized that early attachment, attachment to parents, continue to influence relationships in adulthood, particularly via the working models of self and others that the individual has internalized (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007). In adult attachment, four prototypical attachment models have been defined to interpret positive or negative images of self and others (i.e., internal working models): secure attachment, anxious-preoccupied attachment, anxious-avoidant attachment and fearful-avoidant attachment (Bartholomew & Horowitz, 1991). Adult attachment can also be understood along two dimensions: anxiety, which refers to the fear of abandonment, and avoidant attachment, which refers to the fear of intimacy and dependence (Fraley, Waller, & Brennan, 2000; Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007).

Dinero et al. (2008) showed that parental attachment had an indirect contribution through both romantic interaction and attachment security on young adult. Similarly, Nosko et al. (2011) found that positive parent-child relationship could have an impact on the quality and development of romantic relationship. However, no study has confirmed these findings and the direction of these associations. Some studies have shown that an individual's attachment style with their romantic partner, or in their romantic relationship, is not correlated with parental attachment (Furman, Simon, Shaffer, & Bouchey, 2002; Fraley & Shaver, 2000), and the nature of the attachment may vary depending on the relationships involved (Caron, Lafontaine, Bureau, Levesque, & Johnson, 2012; Ross & Spinner, 2001). It is therefore useful to study other related variables that could help understand what may influence de role of attachment styles on relationship quality. One of the variables that may influence this relationship is trait mindfulness.

1.3. Mindfulness and the quality of interpersonal relationships

Mindfulness can be defined as the awareness that arises from deliberate, non-judgmental attention to the present moment (Kabat-Zinn, 2003). It can be represented as a dispositional trait (Jones, Welton, Oliver, & Thoburn, 2011) on a continuum ranging from low daily frequency of mindfulness to high frequency (Brown & Ryan, 2003). Over twenty years ago, authors suggested that mindfulness should promote a greater sense of connection (Kabat-Zinn, 1993; Welwood, 1996). More recent studies on the association between mindfulness and quality of interpersonal relationships, particularly romantic relationships, have underlined a positive correlation (Barnes, Brown, Krusemark, Campbell, & Rogge, 2007; Brown & Ryan, 2007; Burpee & Langer, 2005; Jones et al., 2011, Pepping, Davis, & O’Donovan, 2013; Wachs & Cordova, 2007). This relationship appears to be explained by the fact that mindfulness is also positively correlated with emotional intelligence and social skills (Baer, Smith, & Allen, 2004; Baer, Smith, Hopkins, Krietemeyer, & Toney, 2006; Walchs & Cordova, 2007), as well as empathy (Dekeyser, Raes, Leijssen, Leysen, & Dewulf, 2008). Indeed, Fonagy et al. (2002) have also shown that mindfulness is close to the concepts of reflexivity and mentalization, i.e. the ability to understand the relationships of others in relation to their underlying mental states, thoughts, beliefs or intentions, which are necessary for good relationship quality. However, although it appears that a high level of mindfulness promotes better romantic relationships, and that this ability can be trained and improved (Kappen, Karremans, & Burk, 2019), some authors question the accessibility of these interventions for all individuals based on other individual characteristics (Farias & Wikholm, 2016). It is therefore useful to better understand how mindfulness may influence attachment, and hence relationship quality.

1.4. Mindfulness and attachment

The working models of self and others, developed from childhood, contain 'guidelines' and 'prototypes' for future relationships, including friendships and romantic relationships. Authors have shown that attachment styles in adulthood are however changeable (Davila, Karney, & Bradbury, 1999; Nosko et al., 2011). It is therefore necessary to study variables that may influence how attachment styles guide future relationship models or help remain more open to new attachment styles during adulthood. Many studies have shown a positive link between secure attachment and mindfulness (Pepping, O’Donovan, & Davis, 2014; Shaver, Lavy, Saron, & Mikulincer, 2007; Walsh et al., 2009). In romantic relationships, Jones et al. (2011) found that anxious and avoidant attachments mediated the relation between trait mindfulness and marital satisfaction. However, Pepping et al. (2015) showed that there was no direct, immediate and causal relationship between attachment and state mindfulness. Specifically, improving one did not lead to an improvement in the other, in either direction. The relationship between mindfulness and attachment is therefore complex, and needs further studies to analyse their respective roles and mutual influences.

1.5. The present study

The literature shows that attachment and mindfulness are correlated with relationship quality. This study therefore aims to refine the understanding of the link between these three variables according to the type of relationship considered (romantic vs. family). Moreover, the transition period between adolescence and adulthood corresponds to a period during which attachment style is stronger associated to development of close relationships (Feeney, 2004). For this reason, the study focuses on young adults, first-year university students. This population is also interesting for this study because they are likely to be non-experts in mindfulness. Furthermore, young adults tend to seek emotional support from friends and romantic partners rather than parents during the transition to adulthood (Sukhawathanakul, Ames, & Leadbeater, 2020). This would imply that the relationships young adults have with their friends and romantic partners are flourishing, and those with their parents are becoming less predominant. The current study therefore aimed at studying the role of adult attachment in the quality of romantic relationships and the role of attachment to parents in the quality of family relationships, and seeks to identify a possible mediator of these relationships: mindfulness, which could act as a resource fostered by secure attachment which could promote relationship quality.

The following two hypotheses were therefore put forward:

Hypothesis 1

Mindfulness mediates the relationship between adult attachment and the quality of romantic relationship.

Hypothesis 2

Mindfulness mediates the relationship between parental attachment and the quality of family relationship.

2.1. Participants and procedure

Data were collected through self-report questionnaires among first-year psychology students. The final sample consisted of 195 students (mainly female, 81%, mean age = 19.62; SD = 3.07), of whom 59.5% were in romantic relationships, 3.6% were married or in a civil partnership, and 3.1% had children. Among the respondents, 37.4% lived alone, 32.8% lived with their parents, 14.4% lived in a shared flat and 13.8% lived in couple. Regarding past events and experiences, 67.2% reported having experienced a painful relationship break-up. A small proportion of participants had practiced meditation (14.9%), which was assessed to control for the extent to which this experience explained individual differences in mindfulness trait scores.

The project was first registered with the national data protection authority (CNIL, Commission Nationale de l'Informatique et des Libertés), experiment was performed in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations, and approved by the ethics committee for non-interventional studies (CERNI, Comité Ethique pour les Recherches Non-Interventionnelles) of Grenoble-Alpes University. This study was part of a larger study on attachment (anonymized). Students were recruited at the university at the beginning of a psychology course. Before being asked to sign the consent form, they were informed about the content of the study and assured that they would not be identifiable. They were then given a series of self-report questionnaires. Students were given three different sets of questionnaires to balance the order of the scales. At the end of the questionnaire, participants were asked to complete demographic data, as well as information about their previous relationships and meditation experiences.

2.2. Measures

2.2.1. Trait-Mindfulness

The Comprehensive Inventory Mindfulness Experiences (CHIME, Bergomi, Tschacher, & Kupper, 2013) is a multidimensional scale that aims to cover the multiple dimensions of mindfulness that have been assessed by validated scales so far (e.g., acting mindfully, acceptance, non-reactivity...). It is composed of 37 items, assessed on a 6-point Likert scale ranging from: 1 ("almost never") to 6 ("almost always"). After recoding the reversed items, a total score was calculated by adding the scores of each of the 37 items. A higher score represents greater trait awareness. This scale has been validated in French (Shankland et al., 2013). The questionnaire was translated to French by two independent translators, then items were discussed and a second version was backtranslated and were compared with the original version and the differences were discussed with the original authors of the CHIME in order to determine the best possible translation to French language. This scale demonstrates satisfactory internal consistency in the current study (α = .73). This trait-mindfulness scale was selected for the present study because it was specifically designed for people without any mindfulness practice experience. The words used were therefore initially chosen to allow participants to answer the questions without having taken part in a Mindfulness-Based Program. As our hypothesis focused on trait-mindfulness and not on one of its dimensions, we only used the total Mindfulness score.

2.2.2. Attachment

Adult attachment. The French validation of Experiences in Close Relationships short version (ECR-12, Brassard, Péloquin, Lussier, Sabourin, Lafontaine, & Shaver, 2012), an adaptation of the ECR (Brennan, Clark, & Shaver, 1998; Lafontaine & Lussier, 2003), consists of 12 items assessing anxious attachment (e.g., ''I worry about being abandoned.'') and avoidant attachment (e.g., ''I don't feel comfortable opening up to romantic partners.''). Each item is rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 ("strongly disagree") to 7 ("strongly agree"). The items were averaged, with higher scores indicating greater levels of anxiety or attachment avoidance. Each scale showed good internal consistency in this study (α = .84 and α = .86 respectively).

Parental attachment. We used the French validation of the questionnaire developed by Vignoli and Mallet (2004), based on the Inventory of Attachment to Parents and Peers (IPPA, Armsden & Greenberg, 1987). This questionnaire assesses attachment along a three-dimensional model: communication, trust and alienation. Communication refers to the perceived quality of verbal communication with parents (e.g., "My mother/father encourages me to talk about my difficulties"), trust is related to the feeling of security (e.g., "My mother/father trusts my judgement"), and alienation represents an emotional distance from a parent without empathy (e.g., "I feel that my mother/father does not understand me"). The scale consists of 28 items, 14 of which are specified for the mother and the other 14 for the father. Two scores are obtained by summing the father's and mother's items separately, with high values indicating high secure attachment. For each parent, three scores are also calculated for each subscale (communication, trust and alienation). For this study, the internal consistency coefficients range from .73 to .89 for the mother's subscales and from .76 to .90 for the father's subscales.

2.2.3. Quality of interpersonal relationships

We used the interpersonal relationship quality scale, a French scale called EQRI (Senécal, Vallerand, & Vallières, 1992), which assesses the quality of interpersonal relationships with family members, romantic partners, friends, colleagues and others. Each category is assessed independently by means of 4 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 ("not at all") to 4 ("extremely") (e.g., "currently, my relationship with my family is harmonious"). In the present study, we only assessed the quality of relationships with family members (α = 0.91), and the romantic partner (α = 0.93).

2.3. Data Analysis

The probability level of statistical significance was set at p ≤ 0.05 for all statistical analyses. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was performed using AMOS 19. SEMs were performed according to the procedure and criteria described in detail by Kline (2016). The Maximum Likelihood (ML) method was used as one of the most frequently used estimation methods with continuous variables (Jackson et al., 2009). Models were evaluated on the basis of multiple indicators: Chi-squared divided by the degree of freedom (to account for model complexity); comparative fit index (CFI), goodness of fit index (GFI), standardized fit index (NFI), root mean square error approximation (RMSEA). A model was considered to be well fitted if the x2/df was < 3. In addition, CFI, GFI and NFI values close to 1 indicate a strong fit, with values above 0.90 being considered an acceptable fit. RMSEA values below 0.08 indicate an acceptable fit, with 0.05 being the optimal critical value (Kline, 2016).

3.1. Descriptive data

Variables of the study were described in table below (Table 1).

Table 1

*Means, standard deviations, possible range, and actual range for all variables*
Variables	Mean	SD	Possible range	Actual range
Mindfulness	3.79	0.41	1–6	2.81–5.11
Mother attachment
Communication	3.74	0.99	1–5	1–5
Trust	4.19	0.75	1–5	1.25-5
Alienation	2.31	0.89	1–5	1-4.75
Father attachment
Communication	2.66	1.05	1–5	1–5
Trust	3.70	1.13	1–5	1–5
Alienation	2.71	1.03	1–5	1–5
Romantic attachment
Anxiety	4.54	1.32	1–7	1.17-7
Avoidance	2.83	1.24	1–7	1-6.17
Relation quality
Family Romantic	11.14 11.86	3.94 4.11	0–16 0–16	0–16 0–16

3.2. Hypothesis 1: Mindfulness mediates the relationship between adult attachment and romantic relationship quality

We tested a model in which dispositional mindfulness mediated the relationship between adult attachment and romantic relationship quality. The model tested showed a strong fit to the data in agreement with all conventional cut-off criteria (x2/1 df = 1.31; RMSEA = .052; CFI = .996; GFI = .994; NFI = .985). This model has two direct effects (for mindfulness and avoidant attachment) and two indirect effect paths with mindfulness mediating the relationship between attachment and relationship quality. All variables are directly or indirectly related to family relationship quality in the expected direction.

The final model is presented in Fig. 1, with standardized loadings and squared multiple correlations for each variable.

Standardized path coefficients (β) are shown in bold, and square multiple correlations (r²) in italics, and correlations (r) in standard font

Consistent with the model, bootstrapping tests indicated significant indirect effects, via dispositional mindfulness, for the relationship between avoidant attachment and romantic relationship quality, and between anxious attachment and romantic relationship quality. The results of the mediation analyses using bootstrap estimates are presented in detail in Table 2.

Table 2

*Test of indirect effects (mediation) using Bootstrap method with bias correction for hypothesis* 1 *(quality of romantic relationship as dependent variable, and mindfulness as a mediator, as in* Fig. 1)
	Indirect effects
	Beta	S.E	Lower Bound	Upper Bound
Avoidant attachment	− .09	.04	− .17	− .04
Anxious attachment	− .14	.05	− .24	− .05

The absence of 0 in the confidence interval indicates of significant indirect effects

3.3. Hypothesis 2: Mindfulness mediates the relationship between parental attachment and family relationship quality

We tested a model in which dispositional mindfulness mediated the relationship between parental attachment and family relationship quality. This model failed to fit the data with respect to the conventional cut-off criterion (x2/2 df = 45.91; RMSEA = .481; CFI = .112; GFI = .841; NFI = .143).

Additional analyses for hypothesis 2 were therefore conducted using multiple linear regression to identify the variables (demographics, mindfulness trait and attachment) that best predicted family relationship quality.

Family relationship quality was predicted by attachment to mother (β = .36; p < .001) and attachment to father (β = .48; p < .001). Secure attachment led to higher levels of relationship quality. Neither mindfulness nor demographic variables were significantly associated with family relationship quality in the multiple regression analyses. The final model with parental attachments as predictors of family relationship quality explained 39% of the variance.

4.1. The mediating effect of trait-mindfulness between attachment and romantic relationship quality

The first hypothesis of this study was to examine whether trait-mindfulness mediated the relationship between the two dimensions of attachment and the quality of romantic relationship. The results of the present study were in line with this hypothesis: mindfulness completely mediated the relation between anxious attachment and romantic relationship quality. Indeed, the results showed that a low level of anxious attachment was associated with a high level of trait-mindfulness which leads to a higher quality of romantic relationship. In the same way as for anxious attachment, a low level of avoidant attachment intimacy avoidance was correlated with a high level of mindfulness leading to a better quality of romantic relationship. However, the mediation was partial because there was also a direct effect of avoidant attachment, whereby the lower the level, the better the quality of the relationship. Attachment in the couple is built in relation to previous relational experiences and becomes secure when the members of the couple have the capacity to evoke their emotions with their partner who will accept them and help to regulate them. The romantic relationship therefore requires to consider the mental states of the self and the other. Being aware of one's emotions, being able to express them without judgment corresponds to trait-mindfulness. These observations lead to believe that couples, despite the presence of anxious or avoidant attachment in one or both partners, may increase their mindfulness levels in order to increase the quality of their romantic relationship (Chopik, Edelstein, & Fraley, 2013; Crowell, Fraley, & Roisman, 2016). The results of these mediation models are encouraging regarding romantic relationships because they counteract fatalistic assumptions that the influence of early attachment is irrevocable. They favor emotion-focused therapies that help the patient to make his or her emotions accessible, to share them and thus to gain security within the couple, regardless of the attachment style initially developed. The present findings thus corroborate previous research on mindfulness and relationship quality (Arch & Craske, 2006; Barnes et al., 2007; Block-Lerner, Adair, Plumb, Rhatigan, & Orsillo, 2007; Brown & Ryan, 2003; Wachs & Cordova, 2007). The link between attachment and mindfulness remains complex and probably involves a two-way dimension. In the clinical field, mindfulness-based programs have been shown to improve communication, self-understanding, and conflict resolution through improvements in individual well-being, emotional competence, empathy, and sexual satisfaction (Kappen et al., 2019). These interventions, indirectly, could therefore promote the development of secure attachment in the couple. However, a recent study shows that a high level of mindfulness in one partner does not necessarily lead relationship satisfaction for both (Zhou, Lin, Li, Du, & Xu, 2022). More precisely, these authors showed that men's relationship satisfaction is predicted by their own level of mindfulness, but also by their partner’s, whereas women's satisfaction is predicted only by their own level of mindfulness. It would therefore be interesting to also take this asymmetry into account in future studies and programs.

4.2. The direct effect of parental attachment on family relationship quality

The second hypothesis concerning the existence of the mediating role of mindfulness in the relation between parental attachments and quality of the family relationship was not confirmed. Indeed, in this study, the latter was entirely predicted by parental attachments without any influence of trait mindfulness. Attachment to the father and mother together explained a large part of the variance in family relationship quality (39%). Attachment resulting from early childhood relationships, built in early interactions and repeated experiences, thus seems to be very strongly related to the quality of future family relationships. It is conceivable that, in the absence of major changes in relationships with parents in adulthood, secure attachment will lead to good relationship quality and insecure attachment to poorer relationship quality.

4.3. Limitations

Some limitations of the present study suggest ways forward for future research. First, the generalizability of our results is somewhat limited due to the small sample size and the specificity of our population. Indeed, the participants in the present study were psychology students and therefore our results may be difficult to generalize to the general population affected by attachment disorders or to people with significant relationship difficulties. Nevertheless, in our sample, a high proportion of students (67.2%) reported having experienced a painful relationship breakdown. Second, the design of the study was cross-sectional, which does not allow to conclude on the causal relationship between the variables studied. Despite these shortcomings, this study contributes to the recent literature on the link between mindfulness and relationship quality, and illustrates the value of targeting mindfulness in interventions for relationship problems (Carson et al., 2004, 2007).

The current findings confirm that attachment-based interventions are the interventions of choice when it comes to improving the quality of family relationships. For romantic relationships, interventions that enhance trait mindfulness may be more effective. As satisfying romantic relationship are also related to young adult well-being (Gómez-López, Viejo, & Ortega-Ruiz, 2019), developing mindfulness to improve couple satisfaction and well-being therefore seems to be a useful therapeutic target. Future research will need to apply longitudinal designs and target a more heterogeneous population to shed more light on this area of research.

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Attachment Styles and Quality of Romantic and Family Relationship in a French Population of Young Adults: the Mediating Role of Trait-mindfulness

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Abstract

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1. INTRODUCTION

1.2. Attachment and the quality of interpersonal relationships

1.3. Mindfulness and the quality of interpersonal relationships

1.4. Mindfulness and attachment

1.5. The present study

2. METHOD

2.1. Participants and procedure

2.2. Measures

2.2.1. Trait-Mindfulness

2.2.2. Attachment

2.2.3. Quality of interpersonal relationships

2.3. Data Analysis

3. RESULTS

3.1. Descriptive data

3.2. Hypothesis 1: Mindfulness mediates the relationship between adult attachment and romantic relationship quality

3.3. Hypothesis 2: Mindfulness mediates the relationship between parental attachment and family relationship quality

4. Discussion

4.1. The mediating effect of trait-mindfulness between attachment and romantic relationship quality

4.2. The direct effect of parental attachment on family relationship quality

4.3. Limitations

5. Conclusion

References

Additional Declarations

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