Attachment styles, traumatic events, and PTSD: a cross-sectional investigation of adult attachment and trauma

Attach Hum Dev. 2008 Mar;10(1):59-71. doi: 10.1080/14616730701868597.

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to examine the association between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and adult attachment in a young adult population. A sample of 328 Danish students (mean age 29.2 years) from four different schools of intermediate education level were studied by the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ), the Revised Adult Attachment Scale (RAAS), the Trauma Symptom Checklist (TSC), the Crisis Support Scale (CSS), the Coping Style Questionnaire (CSQ), and the World Assumption Scale (WAS). Attachment styles were associated with number of PTSD symptoms, negative affectivity, somatization, emotional coping, attributions, and social support. The distribution of attachment styles in relation to PTSD symptoms could be conceived as uni-dimensional.

MeSH terms

  • Adaptation, Psychological
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Analysis of Variance
  • Avoidance Learning
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Denmark
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Object Attachment*
  • Regression Analysis
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Social Support
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / etiology
  • Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / psychology*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires