The strange case of sustained dedication to an unfulfilling relationship: Predicting commitment and breakup from attachment anxiety and need fulfillment within relationships

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

Volumn 35, Issue 1, 2009, Pages 85-100

  Slotter, Erica B ^a   Finkel, Eli J ^a  

^a NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Attachment; Breakup; Commitment; Need fulfillment; Self determination theory

Indexed keywords

ADOLESCENT; ADULT; ANXIETY; ARTICLE; CONFLICT; COURTSHIP; DEPENDENT PERSONALITY DISORDER; FEMALE; HUMAN; INDIVIDUALITY; LONGITUDINAL STUDY; MALE; OBJECT RELATION; PERSONAL AUTONOMY; PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECT; SATISFACTION; STATISTICAL MODEL; STUDENT;

ADOLESCENT; ANXIETY; CONFLICT (PSYCHOLOGY); COURTSHIP; DEPENDENCY (PSYCHOLOGY); FEMALE; HUMANS; INDIVIDUALITY; LIKELIHOOD FUNCTIONS; LONGITUDINAL STUDIES; MALE; OBJECT ATTACHMENT; PERSONAL AUTONOMY; PERSONAL SATISFACTION; STUDENTS; YOUNG ADULT;

EID: 58049136870     PISSN: 01461672     EISSN: 15527433     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/0146167208325244     Document Type: Article

References (35)

1. Aiken, L.S., & West, S.G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
2. Arriaga, X.B., & Agnew, C.R. (2001). Being committed: Affective, cognitive, and conative components of relationship commitment. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27, 1190-1203.
3. Bargh, J.A., & Chartrand, T.L. (2000). The mind in the middle: A practical guide to priming and automaticity research. In H. T. Reis & C. M. Judd (Eds.), Handbook of research methods in social and personality psychology (pp. 253-285). New York: Cambridge University Press.
4. Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss: Vol. 1. Attachment (2 nd ed.). New York: Basic Books.
5. Brennan, K.A., Clark, C.L., & Shaver, P.R. (1998). Self-report measurement of adult attachment: An integrative overview. In J. A. Simpson & W. S. Rholes (Eds.), Attachment theory and close relationships (pp. 46-76). New York: Guilford.
6. Cohen, S., & Wills, T.A. (1985). Stress, social support and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 310-357.
7. Coyne, J.C., Rohrbaugh, M.J., Shoham, V., Sonnega, J.S., Nicklas, J.M., & Cranford, J.A. (2001). Prognostic importance of marital quality for survival of congestive heart failure. American Journal of Cardiology, 88, 526-529.
8. Davila, J., & Bradbury, T.N. (2001). Attachment insecurity and the distinction between unhappy spouses who do and do not divorce. Journal of Family Psychology, 15, 371-393.
9. Davila, J., & Sargent, E. (2003). The meaning of life (events) predicts changes in attachment security. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 29, 1383-1395.
10. Deci, E.L., La Guardia, J.G., Moller, A.C., Scheiner, M.J., & Ryan, R.M. (2006). On the benefits of giving as well as receiving autonomy support: Mutuality in close friendships. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 313-327.
11. Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (1991). A motivational approach to the self: Integration in personality. In R. Dienstbier (Ed.), Nebraska symposium on motivation: Vol. 38. Perspectives on motivation (pp. 237-288). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
12. Drigotas, S.M., & Rusbult, C.E. (1992). Should I stay or should I go? A dependence model of breakups. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62, 62-87.
13. Dutton, D.G., & Painter, S.L. (1993). Traumatic bonding: The development of emotional attachments in battered women and other relationships of intermittent abuse. Victomology: An International Journal, 6, 139-155.
14. Finkel, E.J., Burnette, J.L., & Scissors, L.E. (2007). Vengefully ever after: Destiny beliefs, state attachment anxiety, and forgiveness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 871-886.
15. Green, J.D., & Campbell, W.K. (2000). Attachment and exploration in adults: Chronic and contextual accessibility. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26, 452-461.
16. Hodgins, H.S., Koestner, R., & Duncan, N. (1996). On the compatibility of autonomy and relatedness. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, 227-237.
17. Kirkpatrick, L.A., & Davis, K.E. (1994). Attachment style, gender, and relationship stability: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66, 502-512.
18. Kirkpatrick, L.A., & Hazan, C. (1994). Attachment styles and close relationships: A four-year prospective study. Personal Relationships, 1, 123-142.
19. La Guardia, J.G., Ryan, R.M., Couchman, C.E., & Deci, E.L. (2000). Within-person variation in security of attachment: A self-determination theory perspective on attachment, need fulfillment, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 367-384.
20. Le, B., & Agnew, C.R. (2001). Need fulfillment and emotional experience in interdependent romantic relationships. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 18, 423-440.
21. Le, B., & Agnew, C.R. (2003). Commitment and its theorized determinants: A meta-analysis of the investment model. Personal Relationships, 10, 37-57.
22. Mikulincer, M., & Shaver, P.R. (2007). Attachment in adulthood: Structure, dynamics, and change. New York: Guilford.
23. Mikulincer, M., Shaver, P., Gillath, O., & Nitzberg, R.A. (2005). Attachment, caregiving, and altruism: Boosting attachment security increases compassion and helping. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89, 817-839.
24. Patrick, H., Knee, C.R., Canevello, A., & Lonsbary, C. (2007). The role of need fulfillment in relationship functioning and well-being: A self-determination theory perspective. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 434-456.
25. Reis, H.T., Clark, M.S., & Holmes, J.G. (2004). Perceived partner responsiveness as an organizing construct in the study of intimacy and closeness. In D. J. Mashek & A. P. Aron (Eds.), Handbook of closeness and intimacy (pp. 201-225). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
26. Reis, H.T., Sheldon, K.M., Gable, S.L., Roscoe, J., & Ryan, R.M. (2000). Daily well-being: The role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26, 419-435.
27. Rusbult, C.E. (1983). A longitudinal test of the investment model: The development (and deterioration) of satisfaction and commitment in heterosexual involvements. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 45, 101-117.
28. Rusbult, C.E., & Martz, J.M. (1995). Remaining in an abusive relationship: An investment model analysis of nonvoluntary dependence. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 21, 558-571.
29. Rusbult, C.E., Martz, J.M., & Agnew, C.R. (1998). The Investment Model Scale: Measuring commitment level, satisfaction level, quality of alternatives, and investment size. Personal Relationships, 5, 357-387.
30. Ryan, R.M., & Deci, E.L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141-166.
31. Ryan, R.M., La Guardia, J.G., Solky-Butzel, J., Chirkov, V., & Kim, Y. (2005). On the interpersonal regulation of emotions: Emotional reliance across gender, relationships, and cultures. Personal Relationships, 12, 145-163.
32. Singer, J.D., & Willett, J.B. (2003). Applied longitudinal data analysis. New York: Oxford University Press.
33. Srull, T.K., & Wyer, R.S., Jr. (1979). Category accessibility and social perception: Some implications for the study of person memory and interpersonal judgments. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37, 1660-1672.
34. Thibaut, J.W., & Kelley, H.H. (1959). The social psychology of groups. New York: John Wiley.
35. Wei, M., Shaffer, P.A., Young, S.K., & Zakalik, R.A. (2005). Adult attachment, shame, depression, and loneliness: The mediation role of basic psychological needs satisfaction. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52, 591-601.