Insecure Attachment and Subclinical Depression, Anxiety, and Stress: A Three-Dimensional Model of Personality Self-Regulation As a Mediator

Abstract

Although the effects of insecure attachment on vulnerability, incidence, and developing mental disorders have been confirmed by many studies, the mechanism of this effect is still unknown. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to investigate the mediating and moderating role of the three-dimensional model of personality self-regulation in the relationship between insecure attachment and subclinical depression, anxiety, and stress. Four hundred Iranian students at Shiraz University were recruited and completed the following scales: the Revised Adult Attachment, Depression Anxiety Stress, Integrative Self-Knowledge, Mindful Attention Awareness, Self-Control, and Self-Compassion. Results showed that there was a moderate correlation among all the variables under study in the expected directions. Multiple mediating models analyses indicated that regarding the relationship between insecure attachment and depression, the components of integrative self-knowledge, self-control, and self-compassion functioned as mediators. However, regarding the relationship between insecure attachment and anxiety and stress, the components of integrative self-knowledge, mindfulness, and self-compassion relatively functioned as mediators. Further, our results showed that only mindfulness and self-compassion were identified as moderators in the relationship between insecure attachment and depression. It is concluded that insecure attachment may cause psychological damage due to deficiency in the components of the three-dimensional model of personality self-regulation, and that mindfulness and self-compassion may play a protective role in the relationship between insecure attachment and depression.

Keywords:

• Anxiety
• depression
• insecure attachment
• self-regulation
• stress
• three-dimensional model of personality self-regulation

Disclosure Statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author Notes

Ahmad Valikhani is a researcher at Shiraz University. His research interests include personality, clinical, health, and positive psychology. His research interests are mainly focused on mindfulness, patience, personality disorders, attachment, and self-regulation.

Zahra Abbasi has a master's degree in Clinical Psychology from Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch. Her research interests concern clinical and health psychology, in particular, mindfulness and self-regulation.

Elham Radman has a master's degree in Clinical Psychology from Islamic Azad University of Arak. Her research interests include personality and mental disorders.

Mohammad Ami Goodarzi is a professor of Clinical Psychology at Shiraz University. His research interests include cognitive and clinical psychology and cognitive psychotherapy.

Ahmed A. Moustafa is a senior lecturer in Cognitive and Behavioural Neuroscience at Western Sydney University and Qatar University. His research interests lie at the intersection of computational modeling, cognitive neuroscience, and clinical neuropsychology. He is interested in understanding learning and cognitive function in various psychiatric and neurological disorders.