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An investigation into the relationship between attachment, gender and recovery from psychosis in a stable community‐based sample
Author(s) -
Mulligan Alison,
Lavender Tony
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
clinical psychology and psychotherapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.315
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1099-0879
pISSN - 1063-3995
DOI - 10.1002/cpp.655
Subject(s) - attachment theory , psychology , psychosis , style (visual arts) , perception , population , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , insecure attachment , psychiatry , medicine , environmental health , archaeology , neuroscience , history
The current study sought to investigate how men and women who experience psychosis represent early bonding experiences, current attachment style and the recovery style adopted. Seventy‐three participants (18 women and 55 men) with a diagnosis of psychosis completed the Parental Bonding Instrument, the Attachment Style Questionnaire and the Recovery Style Questionnaire. Differences were observed between men and women in relation to the nature of insecure attachment styles demonstrated. Significant associations were found between perceptions of parents as uncaring and insecurity in adult attachment style. A greater number of significant associations were found between recollections of early bonding and attachment styles amongst women than men. Men and women did not differ significantly in terms of the recovery style adopted, nor were significant differences found in relation to perceptions of early bonding experiences. Methodological and theoretical issues were considered and directions for future research were suggested. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Key Practitioner Message: Individuals with psychosis are more likely to have lower levels of parental care than the general population. This lower parental care is likely to be associated with insecure adult attachment relationships but not recovery style.