The Contribution of Attachment Styles and Reassurance Seeking to Daily Mood and Relationship Quality in Romantic Couples

Excessive reassurance seeking (ERS), defined as the stable tendency to excessively and persistently seek assurances from others, has recently emerged as a possible risk factor for interpersonal distress and depression. An important limitation in the ERS literature concerns the mechanism(s) by which individuals engage in ERS. The current daily diary study was among the first to examine the daily relationships among ERS, mood, and relationship quality in romantic couples, and explore how these associations were moderated by individual and partner attachment styles. Method: A sample of 110 heterosexual couples completed measures of attachment, ERS, symptoms of depression, and relationship quality. Results: In line with prior research, an anxious attachment style was associated with higher daily ERS, and an avoidant attachment style with lower daily ERS. Lower levels of trust were also associated with greater daily ERS, whereas higher relationship quality was related to greater daily ERS in men, and lower daily ERS in women. This study extended the literature by demonstrating that for women with an anxious attachment style, and men with an avoidant attachment style, ERS was related to lower next day trust. In contrast, the partners of men with an avoidant attachment style, who also engaged in ERS, reported higher levels of next day trust. This study was also the first to examine how individual attachment styles influenced the perception of, and reactions to, ERS. Women with an anxious attachment style liked when their male partners engaged in ERS, as illustrated by higher levels of reported trust. Conclusion: These results support the idea that attachment styles play an important role in determining whether or not ERS leads to negative interpersonal consequences. They also suggest that it is not the behaviour or frequency of ERS per se that is associated with negative relational outcomes; rather, it is the combination of relationship insecurities and ERS that leads to negative social consequences. The ERS model may need to be re-conceptualized to account for the notion that there may be both secure and insecure forms of reassurance seeking, with the insecure leading to negative psychological or interpersonal outcomes

An integrative model of excessive reassurance seeking and negative feedback seeking in the development and maintenance of depression.

Depression and interpersonal dysfunction are inextricably linked. Interpersonal behaviors in individuals with depression, specifically excessive reassurance seeking (ERS) and negative feedback seeking (NFS), have recently emerged as possible risk factors for interpersonal rejection and future depression. However, existing models integrating ERS and NFS in individuals with depression lack empirical support and fail to provide an adequate explanation for the negative social and psychological consequences that concurrent ERS and NFS create. The proposed model, based on the bias and accuracy literature in close relationships, suggests that individuals with depression desire and elicit global enhancement (through ERS) and specific verification (through NFS) from close others. This model has strong theoretical and empirical foundations and suggests that depression chronicity and interpersonal distress stem from the influence that early core-beliefs about relationships and self-views have on the seemingly adaptive combination of global enhancement and specific verification

If it be love indeed tell me how much: Early core beliefs associated with excessive reassurance seeking in depression.

This study explored core beliefs associated with excessive reassurance seeking (ERS) in depression. Undergraduate students (n = 303) completed measures of early maladaptive schemas, attachment styles, ERS, and depression, along with a subsequent measure of depressive symptoms 6 weeks later. Anxious attachment, avoidant attachment, and an abandonment/instability schema each added to the prediction of ERS beyond the effects of depression. Moreover, avoidant attachment and the abandonment/instability schema moderated the relationship between ERS and depression over time. These results are consistent with the idea that individuals with early core beliefs reflecting insecurity in relationships seek reassurance. The findings also suggest that it may not be ERS behaviour per se, but rather characteristics of the individual in combination with ERS that are associated with depression

Influence of Priming Attachment Styles on Excessive Reassurance Seeking and Negative Feedback Seeking in Depression

Two studies examined the associations among attachment styles, excessive reassurance seeking (ERS) and negative feedback seeking (NFS) in depression. In Study 1 (n = 303), undergraduate students completed measures assessing attachment style, depressive symptoms, and ERS following either an imaginary interpersonal (friend and partner) or achievement prime. In Study 2 (n = 202), undergraduates completed the same measures in addition to completing an index of NFS following an imaginary interpersonal (partner) and achievement prime. Controlling for symptoms of depression, anxious attachment was positively related to ERS, and avoidant attachment was negatively related to ERS and positively associated with NFS. These results suggest that ERS and NFS may be a function of non-secure attachment rather than symptoms of depression per se. More specifically, anxiously attached individuals may attempt to reduce fears of abandonment by seeking reassurance from close others, whereas avoidantly attached individuals may strive to confirm negative perceptions of the self and relationships by seeking out unfavorable feedback from close others

Changes in Core Beliefs (Early Maladaptive Schemas) and Self-Representation in Cognitive Therapy and Pharmacotherapy for Depression

Randomized clinical trials suggest that cognitive therapy (CT) is comparable to antidepressant medication for the acute treatment of depression. Compelling data also indicate that CT has an added prophylactic benefit relative to pharmacotherapy (PT). The purpose of this study was to examine cognitive change in CT for depression. Participants (N = 42) met diagnostic criteria for a current major depressive episode and were randomly assigned to CT + PT or PT. Participants completed indices of depressive symptomatology, core beliefs (i.e., early maladaptive schemas), and self-attribute redundancy before and after therapy. Self-attribute redundancy was conceptualized as a form of schema organization and operationalized as the number of similar traits that permeate different aspects of self (e.g., as a partner, friend, employee). Treatment change was evident in both groups on self-reported core belief domains, with few between-group differences. Although no group differences were found on attribute redundancy at pre-treatment, there was a significant increase in positive redundancy at post-treatment favoring CT + PT. No group differences were found for negative content. These findings suggest that something about CT may uniquely impact self-representation and that CT may operate by bolstering compensatory schemas

If it be love indeed tell me how much: Early core beliefs associated with excessive reassurance seeking in depression.

This study explored core beliefs associated with excessive reassurance seeking (ERS) in depression. Undergraduate students (n = 303) completed measures of early maladaptive schemas, attachment styles, ERS, and depression, along with a subsequent measure of depressive symptoms 6 weeks later. Anxious attachment, avoidant attachment, and an abandonment/instability schema each added to the prediction of ERS beyond the effects of depression. Moreover, avoidant attachment and the abandonment/instability schema moderated the relationship between ERS and depression over time. These results are consistent with the idea that individuals with early core beliefs reflecting insecurity in relationships seek reassurance. The findings also suggest that it may not be ERS behaviour per se, but rather characteristics of the individual in combination with ERS that are associated with depression

The Contribution of Attachment Styles and Reassurance Seeking to Trust in Romantic Couples

The current daily diary study examined the moderating impact of attachment style on the association between excessive reassurance seeking (ERS) behavior and trust in romantic dyads. A sample of 110 heterosexual couples completed measures of attachment, ERS, and relationship trust. In line with prior research, an anxious attachment style was associated with higher daily ERS, and an avoidant attachment style with lower daily ERS. Lower levels of trust were also associated with greater daily ERS. Moreover, analyses remained significant while controlling for symptoms of depression. This study extended the literature by demonstrating that for women with an anxious attachment style, and men with an avoidant attachment style, ERS was related to lower next day trust. In contrast, the partners of men with an avoidant attachment style, who also engaged in ERS, reported higher levels of next day trust. This study was also the first to examine how individual attachment styles influenced the perception of, and reactions to, ERS. Women with an anxious attachment style liked when their male partners engaged in ERS, as illustrated by higher levels of reported trust. These results support the idea that attachment styles play an important role in determining whether or not ERS leads to negative interpersonal consequences. They also suggest that it is the combination of relationship insecurities and ERS that leads to negative interpersonal consequences

Core beliefs and self-schematic structure in depression

This article reviews recent research on core beliefs (i.e., early maladaptive schemas; EMS) and self-schema structure in depression. The empirical research supports these variables as vulnerability factors for depression. Whereas EMS operate independently of stress, cognitive organization appears to influence depression in a manner consistent with a diathesis-stress model. Recent research has also explored predictors of EMS and schema structure. Specifically, childhood adversity (e.g., emotional maltreatment, peer rejection) are associated with negative self-schemas and core beliefs. Schema beliefs and structure also mediate the relation between early adversity and subsequent depression. Fortunately, these deeper cognitions appear to be modifiable by psychological and pharmacological treatments. Future research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms by which self-schemas become consolidated over time and how they are optimally changed