Longitudinal associations between attachment, differentiation of self, and couple sexual and relational outcomes

David B. Allsop, Amber A. Price, Veronica Hanna-Walker, Chelom E. Leavitt, Emily H. Milius, Shayla M. Driggs

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Scopus citations

Abstract

We explored longitudinal associations between attachment, differentiation, relational satisfaction, and sexual satisfaction and desire among 286 married couples to see which of the two differing domains of attachment and differentiation of self best predict couple relationship outcomes. We observed that baseline attachment variables did not significantly predict couple sexual outcomes a year later while differentiation variables did. Specifically, husbands’ emotional cutoff predicted decreased husbands’ sexual desire and wives’ emotional reactivity predicted decreased wives’ sexual desire. Additionally, wives’ emotional cutoff predicted increased wives’ avoidant attachment and husbands’ avoidant attachment predicted decreased wives’ emotional cutoff. Implications for practitioners are discussed.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)660-679
Number of pages20
JournalSexual and Relationship Therapy
Volume39
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - 2024
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • attachment theory
  • couples
  • differentiation of self
  • sexual desire
  • sexual satisfaction

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Clinical Psychology
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Longitudinal associations between attachment, differentiation of self, and couple sexual and relational outcomes'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this