Luyten, P; Campbell, C; Fonagy, P; (2021) Rethinking the relationship between attachment and personality disorder. Current Opinion in Psychology (In press).

Text Fonagy_aCurrent_Opinion_Psychology_Attachment_PD_FINAL.pdf - Accepted version Access restricted to UCL open access staff until 23 May 2021. Download (427kB)

Abstract

Attachment approaches have played a crucial role in furthering our understanding of individuals with personality disorders (PDs) and their treatment. Yet, recent years have witnessed the emergence of a number of findings that urge us to reconsider the role of attachment in PDs. Besides the overlap between conceptualizations of attachment and core features of PD, there is increasing evidence that the link between childrearing environments, including attachment contexts, and later outcomes is less substantial than often assumed. Here, we summarize these findings and propose a novel approach to the role of attachment in PDs by situating attachment within a broader socio-communicative approach to PDs. This approach involves a reconceptualizing of attachment as an adaptation strategy to a given environment, with attachment contexts being only one, albeit important, context to learn about the social environment. Evidence for these assumptions is reviewed, and clinical implications discussed.

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