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Attachment, Emotion Regulation and Adult Crying

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Emotion Regulation and Well-Being

Abstract

Attachment serves to facilitate the contact with and proximity to the primary caregiver, in that way contributing to a safe exploration of the environment. However, due to inconsistencies in the reaction of the caregiver or her/his absence, insecure attachment styles may develop. This chapter summarizes attachment theory and assessment issues and describes how these attachment processes may exert a life-time influence on emotion regulation. While securely attached individuals can deal adequately with both positive and negative emotions, dismissively attached individuals develop a strong tendency to suppress or deactivate negative affect. In contrast, preoccupied attached individuals hyperactivate negative affect to get attention from their attachment figure. Since there is a close connection between emotion regulation and well-being, this may explain why securely attached individuals generally have more satisfying relationships and a better well-being than their insecurely attached counterparts.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, 9104, 6500 HE, Nijmegen, Netherlands

    Joyce Maas

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  1. Joyce Maas
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  2. Anja Laan
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  3. Ad Vingerhoets
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Correspondence to Joyce Maas .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Center of Research on Psychology in Soma, Tilburg University, Tilburg, 5000 LE, Netherlands

    Ivan Nyklíček

  2. , Department of Clinical Psychology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, 5000 LE, Netherlands

    Ad Vingerhoets

  3. Tilburg Institute for Behavioral Economi, Department of Social Psychology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, 5000 LE, Netherlands

    Marcel Zeelenberg

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Maas, J., Laan, A., Vingerhoets, A. (2011). Attachment, Emotion Regulation and Adult Crying. In: Nyklíček, I., Vingerhoets, A., Zeelenberg, M. (eds) Emotion Regulation and Well-Being. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6953-8_11

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