Attachment and coping with chronic disease

Schmidt, Silke; Nachtigall, Christof; Wuethrich-Martone, Olivia; Strauß, Bernhard

doi:10.1016/s0022-3999(02)00335-5

Cited by 133 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…In line with this, Schmidt and colleagues [70] report relations between acute stress and higher numbers of insecure attachment classifications in patients suffering from breast cancer, chronic leg ulcers, and alopecia. Further research should explore the interaction between stress, attachment, and social support in clinical samples or chronically stressed persons.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%

Adult attachment and social support interact to reduce psychological but not cortisol responses to stress

Ditzen

Schmidt

Strauß

et al. 2008

Journal of Psychosomatic Research

Self Cite

188

143

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Objective: Adult attachment has been suggested to mediate the effect of social support on stress protection. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of adult attachment and social support on psychological and endocrine responses to psychosocial stress.Methods: Sixty-three healthy men who were married or cohabiting were randomly assigned to receive either instructed social support from their partner or no social support before being exposed to a standardized psychosocial stressor (Trier Social Stress Test). Attachment was determined using the Experiences in Close Relationships -Revised questionnaire (ECR-R). State anxiety, mood, and salivary cortisol levels were repeatedly assessed before and after stress.Results: Secure attachment was associated with stronger decreases in state anxiety levels following stress exposure. More importantly, the combination of social support and secure attachment exhibited the lowest anxiety levels after stress (interaction effect). Social support alone reduced cortisol responses to stress, whereas secure attachment did not influence cortisol concentrations.Conclusion: This first study on the interaction of adult attachment and social support in terms of psychological and endocrine stress responses concurs with previous studies suggesting an important protective role of attachment for psychological stress responsiveness. However, attachment did not directly moderate cortisol responses to acute stress. ABSTRACT Objective:Adult attachment has been suggested to mediate the effect of social support on stress protection.The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of adult attachment and social support on psychological and endocrine responses to psychosocial stress. Methods:Sixty-three healthy men who were married or cohabiting were randomly assigned to receive either instructed social support from their partner or no social support before being exposed to a standardized psychosocial stressor (Trier Social Stress Test). Attachment was determined using the Experiences in Close Relationships -Revised questionnaire (ECR-R). State anxiety, mood, and salivary cortisol levels were repeatedly assessed before and after stress. Results:Secure attachment was associated with stronger decreases in state anxiety levels following stress exposure. More importantly, the combination of social support and secure attachment exhibited the lowest anxiety levels after stress (interaction effect). Social support alone reduced cortisol responses to stress, whereas secure attachment did not influence cortisol concentrations. Conclusion:This first study on the interaction of adult attachment and social support in terms of psychological and endocrine stress responses concurs with previous studies suggesting an important protective role of attachment for psychological stress responsiveness. However, attachment did not directly moderate cortisol responses to acute stress.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%

Adult attachment and social support interact to reduce psychological but not cortisol responses to stress

Ditzen

Schmidt

Strauß

et al. 2008

Journal of Psychosomatic Research

Self Cite

188

143

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…A partial survey of findings to date demonstrates its relevance to stress response [9,14,15]; relationship with care providers in diabetic patients [10,70]; pain [12,32,94]; chronic diseases, including ulcerative colitis [9]; alopecia, leg ulcers, and breast cancer [13,95]; somatization [11,96]; hypochondriacal concerns [31]; and health care utilization [72]. In psychosomatic research, the most commonly used scales to date are the AAI, the ECR-R, the RQ, the AAS, and the ASQ.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Adult attachment is becoming increasingly important in psychosomatic research because attachment influences many biopsychosocial phenomena, including social functioning, coping, stress response, psychological well-being, health behavior, and morbidity [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]. Research that incorporates measurement of attachment provides a unique perspective because attachment constructs are theoretically and empirically distinct from other personality and social constructs such as neuroticism, global distress, self-esteem, defensiveness, dysfunctional beliefs, and support seeking [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adult attachment measures: A 25-year review

Ravitz

Maunder

Hunter

et al. 2010

Journal of Psychosomatic Research

518

466

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“…In fact, attachment is frequently considered a mediator of coping styles (Nicholls, Hulbert-Williams, & Bramwell 2014;Schmidt, Nachtigall, Wuethrich-Martone, & Strauss, 2002). A strong fear of rejection involves expecting critical attachment figures to reject or not understand complaints or requests for help.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coordinación emocional en el afrontamiento del cáncer: alexitimia, apego y estrategias de afrontamiento como predictores de bienestar emocional en mujeres sometidas a radioterapia

Alonso¹,

Ezama²,

Gómez³

2017

Rev. iberoam. psicol. salud

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ABSTRACT. The purpose of this study was to deepen our understanding of how to support the emotional well-being of patients subjected to cancer treatment. It was based on the idea that cancer and its treatment make vital demand on the patient and that successful adjustment to their new situation requires good emotional coordination with those closest to them. In a cross-sectional study, 54 women with cancer (breast and lymphoma) about to begin radiotherapy reported on questionnaires on symptom severity, coping strategies, alexithymia, attachment, affect, and emotional well-being. Predictive value of the rest of the variables on affect and well-being was analyzed by multiple linear regression. Perceived severity of symptoms was relevant for predicting affect and emotional well-being. Strong Fear of rejection and abandonment was the best predictor of negative affect, while the alexithymia component Difficulty identifying feelings was the best predictor of positive affect. A problem-solving coping style was also relevant for positive and negative affect. The interpersonal nature of the variables studied is discussed, along with the need to include them to prevent risk of worse adjustment to the consequences of the illness. KEYWORDS: Alexithymia, Attachment, Coping with cancer, Psychological well-being.Coordinación emocional en el afrontamiento del cáncer: alexitimia, apego y estrategias de afrontamiento como predictores de bienestar emocional en mujeres sometidas a radioterapia RESUMEN. El objetivo del estudio es aportar conocimientos sobre cómo favorecer el bienestar emocional de pacientes en tratamiento por cáncer. Se parte de que el cáncer exige enfrentarse a tareas vitales para cuya resolución exitosa se requiere una buena coordinación emocional con las personas cercanas. En un estudio transversal, 54 mujeres con cáncer (mama y linfoma) a punto de comenzar radioterapia informaron a través de cuestionarios sobre: gravedad de los síntomas, modos de afrontamiento de la enfermedad, alexitimia, vínculo de apego, afectos positivos y negativos y bienestar emocional. Se analizó mediante regresión lineal múltiple el valor predictivo sobre los afectos y el bienestar del resto de variables. La gravedad percibida de los síntomas resulta relevante para predecir los afectos y el bienestar emocional. Un alto Temor al rechazo y al abandono es el mejor predictor de los afectos negativos, mientas el componente de la alexitimia Dificultad para identificar emociones lo es de los positivos. El estilo de afrontamiento orientado a la solución también resulta relevante para los afectos positivos y negativos. Se discute sobre el carácter interpersonal de las variables estudiadas y sobre la necesidad de incluirlas en la prevención del riesgo de peor ajuste a las consecuencias de la enfermedad.

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Attachment and coping with chronic disease

Cited by 133 publications

References 23 publications

Adult attachment and social support interact to reduce psychological but not cortisol responses to stress

Adult attachment and social support interact to reduce psychological but not cortisol responses to stress

Adult attachment measures: A 25-year review

Coordinación emocional en el afrontamiento del cáncer: alexitimia, apego y estrategias de afrontamiento como predictores de bienestar emocional en mujeres sometidas a radioterapia

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