When Marriage Breaks Up-Does Attachment Style Contribute to Coping and Mental Health?

This study examines the association between adult attachment style and the way people react to the crisis of divorce. A research group of 120 participants undergoing legal procedures related to divorce and a control group of 108 married participants were classified according to their attachment style (secure, avoidant, anxious-ambivalent) and completed the Mental Health Inventory. In addition, the divorced participants answered scales tapping appraisal of divorce and ways of coping with it. As expected, divorced participants reported more distress than married ones. This effect was found among avoidant and anxious-ambivalent participants, but not among secure participants. Significant differences were also found among attachment groups in appraisal and coping variables. Structural analyses supported the hypothesis that appraisal and coping mediate the association between attachment style and mental health during the crisis of divorce. Results are discussed in terms of attachment theory.