Attachment Theory

Go to the search engine, Google, and type in the box: attachment theory + (pick a mental disorder). Search evidence-based articles and then describe the disorder from an attachment point of view.

ANSWER

Personality Disorder

Personality Disorder is a mental health disorder that influences the way people think, behave, and feels. Personality disorder makes it challenging to interact with others and control emotions. Personality disorder also entails a long-term behavior that does not change much with time. A person with personality disorder experiences challenges in relating and perceiving situations and individuals. Research evidence has shown that personality disorders may stem from attachment theory. Attachment theory is a biopsychosocial model that refers to the characteristics of an individual and the way they relate in close relationships (Levy et al., 2015). These ways of connecting and relating with other individuals are developed during childhood. The interactions of a child with their primary caregiver influence their personality development and mold their relationships and expectations of rejections and social acceptance (Crow and Levy, 2019). A child tends to build a set of mental models and other social interactions based on repeated interactions. These early attachments are vital or the acquisition of capacities that influence stress regulation and affect, mentalization, attentional control, and infancy self-agency. For instance, when in a strange environment, insecure attachment is readily evident when a child shows anxiety in the absence of the caregiver.

Previous research has indicated that insecure attachment patterns are associated with features of borderline personality disorder. The attachment theory states that insecure attachment patterns influence the risk of maladaptive personality traits. Sato, Fonagy, and Luyten (2020) conducted a cross-sectional study that favored a model whereby the relationship between bipolar personality disorder and adult attachment anxiety is completely mediated by impulsivity and trait negative affect.  Levy et al., (2015) also examined multivariate associations between personality disorders and attachment styles and the mediating role of trust. The results of the study indicated that attachment insecurity is highly linked to personality disorder. The main precept is that the development of personality disorders is linked to early interactions with caregivers. Repeated encounters in these domains generate a system of expectations, beliefs, and behaviors that influence an individual’s personality development.

References

Crow, T. M., & Levy, K. N. (2019). Adult attachment anxiety moderates the relation between self‐reported childhood maltreatment and borderline personality disorder features. Personality and mental health, 13(4), 239-249.

Levy, K. N., Johnson, B. N., Clouthier, T. L., Scala, J., & Temes, C. M. (2015). An attachment theoretical framework for personality disorders. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie Canadienne, 56(2), 197.

Sato, M., Fonagy, P., & Luyten, P. (2020). Rejection sensitivity and borderline personality disorder features: The mediating roles of attachment anxiety, need to belong, and self-criticism. Journal of personality disorders, 34(2), 273-288.