The Relationship Between Adult Attachment Orientation and Mindfulness: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Mindfulness can be measured as an individual trait, which varies between individuals. In recent years, research has investigated the overlap between trait mindfulness and attachment. The aim of the present review and meta-analysis was to investigate the current evidence linking adult attachment dimensions to trait mindfulness dimensions, and to quantitatively synthesize these findings using meta-analyses. A systematic literature search was conducted using five scientific databases of which, upon review, 33 articles met inclusion criteria. Inclusion criteria were peer-reviewed journals and dissertations published in English that relied on quantitative methods using reliable and validated self-report measures where study participants were aged 16 years and older. Random-effects model meta-analytic procedures were used to investigate the relationship between both constructs. Cross-sectional studies found significant negative correlations between adult attachment insecurity, on either dimension (anxiety or avoidance) and both total mindfulness score and all five sub-dimensions of mindfulness (act with awareness, observe, describe, non-reacting, and non-judging), with the exception of a non-significant positive correlation between attachment anxiety and observe. The effect size of the relationships ranged from small to medium. The overall mean effect sizes were moderate (anxiety, r+ = .34; avoidance, r+ = −.28), with both attachment dimensions associated with lower levels of total mindfulness. Results are discussed in relation to theory and research. Implications for future research include the need to utilize longitudinal design to address causality and mechanisms of the relationship between these constructs

Challenges to addressing student mental health in embedded counselling services: a survey of UK higher and further education institutions

Background: with reports continually demonstrating increased demand and severity of student mental health needs, it is important to gain a fuller understanding of the impact on embedded student counselling services. Aims: to identify (1) service similarities; (2) factors which impact on services; (3) characteristics of service users; and (4) identify the use of therapeutic technology (e.g. online self-help). Methods: an online survey was completed by 113 heads of UK student counselling services across Higher Education (HE), Further Education (FE), and Sixth Form Colleges (SFCs), to capture service data from the academic year 2013/14. Results: students predominantly received high-intensity support (e.g. Counselling) and referrals increased over 3-years. Conclusion: challenges to embedded counselling services and their implications for development are discussed

Behaviour change techniques for telephone-delivered and supported health coaching interventions

This Evidence Check review examined the effectiveness of specific behaviour change techniques (BCTs) delivered by telephone in two areas: promoting healthy weight; and supporting parents. The review found that telephone-delivered interventions to promote healthy weight can be effectively used to change physical activity levels and improve diet. Interventions designed to support parents have been shown to improve both children’s behaviour and parents’ wellbeing. None of the included studies identified specific tools to determine which BCTs should be employed and when. The authors recommend the systematic use of theory to identify behavioural determinants and select the most effective BCT

Holding back the tears: individual differences in adult crying proneness reflect attachment orientation and attitudes to crying

Despite being a universal human attachment behavior, little is known about individual differences in crying. To facilitate such examination we first recommend shortened versions of the attitudes and proneness sections of the Adult Crying Inventory using two independent samples. Importantly, we examine attachment orientation differences in crying proneness and test the mediating role of attitudes toward crying in this relationship. Participants (Sample 1 N=623, Sample 2 N=781), completed online measures of adult attachment dimensions (avoidance and anxiety), attitudes towards crying, and crying proneness. Exploratory factor analyses in Sample 1 revealed four factors for crying attitudes: crying helps one feel better; crying is healthy; hatred of crying; and crying is controllable; and three factors for crying proneness: threat to self; sadness; and joy. Confirmatory factor analyses in Sample 2 replicated these structures. Theoretically and statistically justified short forms of each scale were created. Multiple mediation analyses revealed similar patterns of results across the two samples, with the attitudes ‘crying is healthy’ and ‘crying is controllable’ consistently mediating the positive links between attachment anxiety and crying proneness, and the negative links between attachment avoidance and crying proneness. Results are discussed in relation to attachment and emotion regulation literature

Insecure attachment orientation and well-being in emerging adults: The roles of perceived social support and fatigue

Attachment theory posits that insecure attachment orientations reflect activation of the attachment behavioural system, and therefore deactivation of its complementary counterpart the exploration system, which is associated with feeling less energized. We hypothesized that less perceived social support and higher fatigue would prospectively explain the link between insecure attachment and well-being in emerging adulthood (ages 18–25), a period in which exploration and social relationships are critical. Participants aged 18-25 completed surveys initially and two weeks later (N = 153). Temporal multiple mediation revealed that, at T1, both forms of insecure attachment (anxious and avoidant) were associated with lower T2 well-being, with less perceived social support and higher levels of fatigue each uniquely explaining these associations, after controlling for the effects of each form of attachment on the other. Our findings suggest that deactivation of the exploration system and information processing biases regarding the availability and trustworthiness of others may compromise well-being for emerging adults with an insecure attachment orientation

The paro robot seal as a social mediator for healthy users

Robots are being designed to provide companionship, but there is some concern that they could lead to a reduction in human contact for vulnerable populations. However, some field data suggests that robots may have a social mediation effect in humanhuman interactions. This study examined social mediation effects in a controlled laboratory setting. In this study 114 unacquainted female volunteers were put in pairs and randomised to interact together with an active Paro, an inactive Paro, or a dinosaur toy robot. Each pair was invited to evaluate and interact with the robot together during a ten minute session. Post-interaction questionnaires measured the quality of dyadic interaction between participants during the session. Our results indicate that the strongest social mediation effect was from the active Paro

Congratulations, It’s a Boy! Bench-Marking Children’s Perceptions of the Robokind Zeno-R25

This paper explores three fundamental attributes of the Robokind Zeno-R25 (its status as person or machine, its ‘gender’, and intensity of its simulated facial expressions) and their impact on children’s perceptions of the robot, using a one-sample study design. Results from a sample of 37 children indicate that the robot is perceived as being a mix of person and machine, but also strongly as a male figure. Children could label emotions of the robot’s simulated facial-expressions but perceived intensities of these expressions varied. The findings demonstrate the importance of establishing fundamentals in user views towards social robots in supporting advanced arguments of social human-robot interaction

Student mental health profiles and barriers to help seeking: When and why students seek help for a mental health concern

Background The student mental health landscape in higher education requires preventative strategies that maintain daily functioning as well as early intervention to respond to episodes of mental ill-health. As a community, this requires capturing the needs of students in the general university population as well as those using counselling and psychological wellbeing services. Aims This cross-sectional study aimed to characterise the mental health profile of students in the general university population and identify barriers to help seeking. Methods A total of 1,956 students from five UK universities completed an online questionnaire comprising the CCAPS-34 and open-ended questions about their mental health concerns and intentions to seek help. Mental health profiles were explored using mixed factorial ANOVAs and post hoc simple effect analyses. Help-seeking behaviours and intentions were identified using conceptual content analysis. Results Distinctive mental health profiles emerged across faculties and help-seeking behaviours. Content analysis identified students’ help-seeking experiences, intentions, preferences and barriers. Conclusions Characterising the mental health profile of students outside of support services, as well as their barriers to seeking help, provides a rich understanding for shaping preventative policies and service provision. Doing so will respond to student mental health needs before they require clinical intervention

Designing robot personalities for human-robot symbiotic interaction in an educational context

The Expressive Agents for Symbiotic Education and Learning project explores human-robot symbiotic interaction with the aim to understand the development of symbiosis over long-term tutoring interactions. The final EASEL system will be built upon the neurobiologically grounded architecture - Distributed Adaptive Control. In this paper, we present the design of an interaction scenario to support development of the DAC, in the context of a synthetic tutoring assistant. Our humanoid robot, capable of life-like simulated facial expressions, will interact with children in a public setting to teach them about exercise and energy. We discuss the range of measurements used to explore children’s responses during, and experiences of, interaction with a social, expressive robot