Attachment Styles and Relationship Quality among Young Couples

  • Fatahyah Yahya
  • Jocelyn Ng Xiao Huix
  • Nor Mazlina Ghazali
  • Azzahrah Anuar
  • Aina Razlin Mohammad Roose
  • Mohamad Azhari Abu Bakar

Abstract

This research was aimed to study the relationship between attachment style and relationship quality among young couples. A correlational research design was adopted to answer the objectives of this study. A total of 257 students of Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS), Sarawak participated in this study. Two types of questionnaire were used in this study; the Experience in Close Relationship (ECR) to measure the attachment styles, and Couples Satisfaction Index (CSI) to measure the relationship satisfaction of the couples. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between attachment style and relationship quality among the young couples in UNIMAS. Attachment avoidance and attachment anxiety had a significant effect on the relationship quality of the young couples. It is suggested for future studies to consider selecting the samples by using simple random sampling as the targeted population would be able to represent the whole population and the result would be more accurate.

Keywords: Attachment avoidance; attachment anxiety

References

Ayenew, E. (2016). The effect of adult attachment style on couples relationship satisfaction. The International Journal of Indian Psychology, 3(2), 50-60.

https://doi.org/10.25215/0302.041

Banse, R. (2004). Adult attachment and marital satisfaction: Evidence for dyadic configuration effects. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 21(2), 273-282.

https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407504041388

Bartholomew, K., & Horowitz, L. M. (1991). Attachment styles among young adults: A test of a four-category model. Retrieved from http://shalamarchild.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/bh199 1.pdf

https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.61.2.226

Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss (2nd ed.). New York City, NY: Basic Books.

Brennan, K. A., & Shaver, P. R. (1998). Attachment styles and personality disorders: Their connections to each other and to parental divorce, parental death, and perceptions of parental care giving. Journal of Personality, 66(5), 835-878.

https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6494.00034

Butzer, B., & Campbell, L. (2008). Adult attachment, sexual satisfaction, and relationship satisfaction: A study of married couples. Personal relationships 15(1), 141-154.

https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6811.2007.00189.x

Collins, N. L., & Read, S. J. (1990). Adult attachment, working models, and relationship quality in dating couples. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58(4), 644-663.

https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.58.4.644

Fard, F. D., & Sehhat, S. (2015). The study of relationship between attachment styles and marital satisfaction and happiness fell among married female students of Islamic Azad University roudehen. Indian Journal of Fundamental and Applied Life Sciences, 5(2), 2061-2066.

Fraley, R. C. (2010). A brief overview of adult attachment theory and research. Retrieved from https://internal.psychology.illinois.edu/ ~rcfraley/attachment.htm

Funk, J. L., & Rogge, R. D. (2007). The couples satisfaction index (CSI). Retrieved from http://fetzer.org/sites/default/files/images/stories/ pdf/selfmeasures/Self_Measures_for_Marital_Satisfaction_COUPLES_SATISFACTION_INDEX.pdf

https://doi.org/10.1037/t01850-000

Graham, J. M., Diebels, K. J., & Barnow, Z. B. (2011). The reliability of relationship satisfaction: A reliability generalization meta-analysis. Journal of Family Psychology, 25(1), 39-48.

https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022441

Hammond, J. R., & Fletcher, G. J. O. (1991). Attachment styles and relationship satisfaction in development of close relationship. New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 20, 56-62.

Hazan, C. & Shaver, P. (1987). Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52(3), 511-524.

https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.52.3.511

Hazan, C., & Shaver, P. (1994). Attachment as an organizational framework for research on close relationship. Retrieved from http://www.psy.miami.edu/faculty/dmessinger/c_c/rsr cs/rdgs/attach/hazanandshaver.pdf

https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327965pli0501_1

Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30, 607-610.

https://doi.org/10.1177/001316447003000308

Simpson, J. A. (1990). Influence of attachment styles on romantic relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 59(5), 971-980.

https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.59.5.971

Yahya, F. (2013). Adult attachment and relationship quality in parents of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Retrieved from http://uobrep.openrepository.com/uobrep/bitstream/10547/291134/1/ Yahya.pdf

Published
2018-02-09
How to Cite
Yahya, F., Xiao Huix, J. N., Ghazali, N. M., Anuar, A., Mohammad Roose, A. R., & Abu Bakar, M. A. (2018). Attachment Styles and Relationship Quality among Young Couples. Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development, 3(1), 11-21. https://doi.org/10.33736/jcshd.643.2017