Attachment Style and Self-Experience: The Association Between Attachment Style and Self-Reported Altered Self-Experience in Patients With Psychotic Disorders, Unaffected Siblings, and Healthy Controls
Justine de With, Lieuwe de Haan, Frederike N. Schirmbeck
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease March 24, 2023 DOI: 10.1097/nmd.0000000000001634 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cross-sectional study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Subsample of the GROUP (Genetic Risk and Outcome of Psychosis) study: patients with psychotic disorders, unaffected siblings, and healthy controls |
| Citations | 8 |
| Key findings | Anxious attachment was positively associated with self-reported disturbed self-awareness and depersonalization across participants with different levels of psychosis vulnerability; avoidant attachment was positively associated with depersonalization at a trend level. The authors indicate these associations hold over and above the influence of psychotic or depressive experiences, and argue that attachment style, self-awareness, and depersonalization are potential targets for prevention and treatment. |
Abstract
ABSTRACT: The present study aimed to examine the cross-sectional association between attachment style and self-reported disturbed self-awareness (disturbed sense of mineness of experiences) and depersonalization (disturbed sense of first-person perspective) in patients with psychotic disorders, unaffected siblings, and healthy controls. Data pertain to a subsample of the GROUP (Genetic Risk and Outcome of Psychosis) study. We found positive associations between anxious attachment and disturbed self-awareness and depersonalization across participants with different psychosis vulnerability. We also found a positive association between avoidant attachment and depersonalization, although on a trend level. Findings indicate that attachment style is associated with self-reported disturbed self-awareness and depersonalization over and above the influence of psychotic or depressive experiences in people across the vulnerability spectrum of psychosis. This supports the importance of attachment style, self-awareness, and depersonalization as potential targets in prevention and treatment interventions in patients with psychotic disorders or those with increased vulnerability.