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Relationship-specific Satisfaction and Adjustment in Emerging Adulthood: The Moderating Role of Adult Attachment Orientation.

ABSTRACT: Highly satisfying social relationships make us happy and healthy-they fill us with joy and a sense of meaning and purpose. But do all the relationships in our lives contribute equally to our well-being and do some people benefit more from certain relationships? The current study examined associations between the satisfaction of specific relationships within a family (i.e., with parents, siblings) and adjustment (i.e., life satisfaction and depressive symptoms) among 572 emerging adults aged 18-25 (M _age = 19.95, SD = 1.42; 77.4% female). Overall, relationship satisfaction with mothers and fathers was associated with better adjustment. Attachment anxiety and avoidance moderated associations between relationship-specific satisfaction and adjustment. We discuss the findings in the context of the shifting of attachment functions during emerging adulthood and the dynamic nature of close relationships across the lifespan.

SUBMITTER: Chopik WJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8942393 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Relationship-specific Satisfaction and Adjustment in Emerging Adulthood: The Moderating Role of Adult Attachment Orientation.

Chopik William J WJ Nuttall Amy K AK Oh Jeewon J

Journal of adult development 20210510 1

Highly satisfying social relationships make us happy and healthy-they fill us with joy and a sense of meaning and purpose. But do all the relationships in our lives contribute equally to our well-being and do some people benefit more from certain relationships? The current study examined associations between the satisfaction of specific relationships within a family (i.e., with parents, siblings) and adjustment (i.e., life satisfaction and depressive symptoms) among 572 emerging adults aged 18-2 ...[more]

PMID: 35342275

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Project description:ObjectiveThe main goal of this study was to examine the interplay between individuals' attachment insecurity and their perceptions of their partners' COVID-related behaviors (supportive and negative behaviors) in predicting their relationship satisfaction.BackgroundStress is a well-documented risk factor for relationship satisfaction. COVID-19 related stressors thus pose a challenge to maintaining relationship satisfaction. Although partners' supportive behaviors can play a central role in mitigating these stressors, enduring individual vulnerabilities, such as attachment insecurity, are likely to moderate the effectiveness of supportive (or negative) behaviors.MethodIn this two-wave study, conducted at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel, 239 participants in cohabiting Israeli couples reported their current relationship satisfaction and perceived partners' supportive and negative behaviors in response to COVID-related stress. Participants' pre-COVID reports of relationship satisfaction and attachment orientations were used to assess the extent to which partners' supportive/negative behaviors interacted with attachment orientations to predict relationship satisfaction maintenance during the first lockdown in Israel.ResultsHigher levels of support and lower levels of negative behaviors were associated with greater relationship satisfaction maintenance. Anxiously attached individuals showed greater sensitivity to their partners' support, whereas avoidantly attached individuals manifested lower reactivity to their partners' negative behaviors.ConclusionsPerceived partners' supportive and negative behaviors can predict relationship satisfaction during stressful times. However, high attachment anxiety and low attachment avoidance may render individuals more sensitive to such behaviors.ImplicationsThe results suggest that during times of stress, it is essential to target partners with attachment insecurity to strengthen their supportive skills.

Project description:Prospective studies suggest that child maltreatment substantially increases the risk for depression in adulthood. However, the mechanisms underlying this association require further elucidation. In recent years, DNA methylation has emerged as a potential mechanism by which maltreatment experiences (a) could partly explain the emergence or aggravation of depressive symptoms (i.e., mediation) and/or (b) could increase (or decrease) the risk for depressive symptoms (i.e., moderation). The present study tested whether the methylation levels of nine candidate genes mediated and/or moderated the association between maltreatment experiences in childhood and depressive symptoms in emerging adulthood. The sample comprised 156 men aged between 18 and 35 years. Maltreatment experiences and depressive symptoms were assessed retrospectively using self-reported questionnaires. Methylation levels of nine candidate genes (COMT, FKBP5, IL6, IL10, MAOA, NR3C1, OXTR, SLC6A3 and SLC6A4), previously reported to be sensitive to early-life stress, were quantified from saliva samples. Maltreatment experiences in childhood were significantly associated with depressive symptoms in emerging adulthood. Both maltreatment experiences and depressive symptoms were associated with the methylation levels of two genomic sites, which cumulatively, but not individually, explained 16% of the association between maltreatment experiences in childhood and depressive symptoms in emerging adulthood. Moreover, maltreatment experiences in childhood interacted with the methylation levels of fourteen genomic sites, which cumulatively, but not individually, modulated the level of depressive symptoms in young male adults who were maltreated as children. However, none of these effects survived multiple testing correction. These findings bring attention to the cumulative effects of DNA methylation measured in several candidate genes on the risk of reporting depressive symptoms following maltreatment experiences in childhood. Nonetheless, future studies need to clarify the robustness of these putative cumulative effects in larger samples and longitudinal cohorts.

Dataset Information

Relationship-specific Satisfaction and Adjustment in Emerging Adulthood: The Moderating Role of Adult Attachment Orientation.

Publications

Relationship-specific Satisfaction and Adjustment in Emerging Adulthood: The Moderating Role of Adult Attachment Orientation.

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