Attachment Cognitions Predict Perceived and Enacted Social Support during Late Adolescence

This study examined the relationship between attachment cognitions and social support in a community sample of late-adolescent women. Participants were 129 women recruited as seniors from three Los Angeles high schools to take part in a 5-year longitudinal study of adolescent development. As predicted, attachment cognitions representing greater security in close relationships were found to be associated with higher levels of perceived and enacted social support. The study also found that differences between subjects reporting secure and insecure attachment cognitions were primarily in the domain of enacted emotional support, as opposed to two other types of enacted support, information and material aid. These findings are consistent with a basic principle of attachment theory: that internalized representations of attachment relationships continue to influence interpersonal functioning during adolescent and adult development.