{"title":"“All You Need Is Love” a Social Network Approach to Understanding Attachment Networks in Adulthood","authors":"Junnan Tian, Harry Freeman","doi":"10.3390/bs14080647","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"This study examined five dimensions of attachment network structure in a large sample of adults (n = 930, 57% female) between 24 to 80 years of age. We employed a newly validated diagrammatic measure, the web-based hierarchical mapping technique (WHMT), to measure the attachment strength to participants’ five closest relationships and the physical distance to and between network members. Our first aim was to replicate existing research on the composition of adult attachment networks, exploring variations in network patterns by age, romantic status, and parental status. Our second aim was to explore four new network dimensions, including physical distance to network members, hierarchical patterns, centrality, and density. The results replicated previous work on network composition, highlighting the pivotal role of romantic partners as primary attachment figures through adulthood. The analysis of the new network dimensions revealed a clear divide between adults in romantic relationships and those who are not. Compared to the single adults, the adults in romantic relationships were more hierarchical in their attachment preferences, reported lower emotional connection to friends and parents, and lived farther from their network, which was also more geographically dispersed. In other words, romantically involved adults put more of their attachment eggs in one basket. The results also showed that the older adults tended to live further away from their attachment network and had a more geographically dispersed network compared to the younger adults.","PeriodicalId":2,"journal":{"name":"ACS Applied Bio Materials","volume":"43 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":4.6000,"publicationDate":"2024-07-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"ACS Applied Bio Materials","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14080647","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"MATERIALS SCIENCE, BIOMATERIALS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
This study examined five dimensions of attachment network structure in a large sample of adults (n = 930, 57% female) between 24 to 80 years of age. We employed a newly validated diagrammatic measure, the web-based hierarchical mapping technique (WHMT), to measure the attachment strength to participants’ five closest relationships and the physical distance to and between network members. Our first aim was to replicate existing research on the composition of adult attachment networks, exploring variations in network patterns by age, romantic status, and parental status. Our second aim was to explore four new network dimensions, including physical distance to network members, hierarchical patterns, centrality, and density. The results replicated previous work on network composition, highlighting the pivotal role of romantic partners as primary attachment figures through adulthood. The analysis of the new network dimensions revealed a clear divide between adults in romantic relationships and those who are not. Compared to the single adults, the adults in romantic relationships were more hierarchical in their attachment preferences, reported lower emotional connection to friends and parents, and lived farther from their network, which was also more geographically dispersed. In other words, romantically involved adults put more of their attachment eggs in one basket. The results also showed that the older adults tended to live further away from their attachment network and had a more geographically dispersed network compared to the younger adults.
期刊介绍:
ACS Applied Bio Materials is an interdisciplinary journal publishing original research covering all aspects of biomaterials and biointerfaces including and beyond the traditional biosensing, biomedical and therapeutic applications.
The journal is devoted to reports of new and original experimental and theoretical research of an applied nature that integrates knowledge in the areas of materials, engineering, physics, bioscience, and chemistry into important bio applications. The journal is specifically interested in work that addresses the relationship between structure and function and assesses the stability and degradation of materials under relevant environmental and biological conditions.