Couple emotional experience: effects of attachment anxiety in low and high structure couple interactions

This study used data from 63 heterosexual couples to investigate the effects of attachment anxiety and how they relate to emotional experience (i.e. psychophysiological distress and feelings towards a partner) in the context of two therapy‐like conditions (low and high structure). We examined both the effect of an individual's anxiety on his/her own emotional experience (actor effects) and on the partner's experience (partner effects). During both interactional conditions, female partners of men higher in attachment anxiety experienced greater psychophysiological distress. In addition, men and women higher in attachment anxiety were not significantly different from others in terms of their feelings towards their partner during the low structure condition. However, their feelings were significantly more positive than others during the high structure condition, providing some evidence that attachment‐based interventions can be especially useful for clients higher in attachment anxiety. Practitioner points Not only should therapists take into account couple distress and volatility when facilitating couple interaction, but they should also account for self‐reported attachment Clients high in attachment anxiety may benefit from the emotional containment provided by having a therapist buffer the couple interaction Clients high in attachment anxiety may especially benefit from therapy process that is anchored in facilitating attachment‐based expression
Source: Journal of Family Therapy - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Tags: Original Article Source Type: research