Attachment Styles And Romantic Relationship Outcomes Psychology Essay

Attachment Styles And Romantic Relationship Outcomes Psychology Essay Many researchers have shown a link between attachment styles and romantic relationship outcomes. Attachment styles deals with early infant parent caring and environment, internal working models of themselves, their early relationships with peer or friends and attachment security. These major attachment styles leads to the different timing of the first sexual intercourse which later shows links to relationship satisfaction, quality of romantic relationships, union formation and the number of romantic partners. The timing of first sexual activity is classified at either early age (14 or earlier), on time (15-19) or late age (19 or older) (Harden 2012). Many studies have shown that individuals prefer partners with similar attachment style, a complementary attachment style or either the attachment style most likely to form attachment security, is all dealt with the age of an individual. This theory of attachment increases the understanding of Hardens (2012) findings and explains these f indings by him. The characteristics and stability of teenagers romantic relationship in young adulthood is concerned with the timing of teenager ¿Ã‚ ½s first sexual intercourse. One theory that suggests reasons for the quality of this romantic relationship is the attachment theory. John Bowlby was the first Psychologist to introduce the attachment theory, describing attachment as a â€Å"lasting psychological connectedness between human beings† (Bowlby, 1969). The attachment theory states that people  ¿Ã‚ ½construct internal, working models of themselves and their early relationships, which function to guide social behaviour throughout their life span ¿Ã‚ ½ (Bowlby, 1973). Hazen and shaver (1987) also concluded that attachment styles may influence the quality of their romantic experiences and their beliefs on relationships. This attachment theory and peer relationships are able to explain Hardens (2012) findings that concluded that  ¿Ã‚ ½timing of first sexual interco urse in adolescence predicts romantic outcomes in adulthood, including union formation, number of romantic partners, and relationship dissatisfaction ¿Ã‚ ½. The essential argument of the attachment theory is if parents are not available and responsive to their children ¿Ã‚ ½s needs are likely to face difficulties in their lives. Belsky et al. (1991); ¿Ã‚ ½Belsky, 1997) ¿Ã‚ ½claimed that an individual ¿Ã‚ ½s early family environment, including the childhood-parent attachment relationship, conveys to children the risks and uncertainties they are likely to face in their lifetimes (Belsky, J. et al. 2010). It has been stated that  ¿Ã‚ ½Such information adaptively regulates psychological, behavioural, and reproductive development, either toward a mutually beneficial orientation to interpersonal relations or toward an opportunistic, advantage-taking point of view ¿Ã‚ ½ (Belsky, J. et al. 2010). This may result and affect mating behaviour, pair bonding, and parental investmen t, and also has been said to result earlier or later sexual intercourse, number of romantic partner, unstable or stable relationships and union formation(Belsky, J. et al. 2010). From this evidence attachment of individuals with their parents explains the results in which romantic relationships are created and built and timing of first sexual intercourse. Friendships are extremely significant during adolescence, so an individual might experience internal working models (attachment theory) of close friendships to become particularly influential during this time (Trinke and Bartholomew, 1997; Weiss, 1991).Researchers have proposed that friendship during adolescence is provided as a supplement rather than a replacement for relationships between parents and should be considered as a unique factor on adolescent functioning (Furman Paterson et al. 1994). Peer relationship or friendship is known to contribute to later romantic relationship outcomes, and best known by the scholar Sullivan( 1953). He viewed  ¿Ã‚ ½chumpships established in middle childhood as foundational for later romantic relationships ¿Ã‚ ½ (Madsen, S., & Collins, W. 2011). A research by Neemann et al. (1995), documented that peer relationships or friendships during the age of middle adolcence influences factors such as romantic relationship involvement, number of romantic partners, and relationship satisfaction and the quality of relationship in young adulthood. Furthermore, rejections experienced by friends in middle adolescence are significant issues in the development of rejection sensitivity, and the results of these experiences of rejection have been strongly correlated with dissatisfaction in romantic relationships (Downey, Bonica, & Rinc ¿Ã‚ ½n, 1999).