Attachment and cognitive openness: Emotional underpinnings of intellectual humility

Abstract

The present research begins to fill an important gap in the current literature about intellectual humility (IH) by investigating how an understanding of emotion, emotion regulation, and attachment are crucial to understanding IH, particularly in the arena in which IH may matter most: heated interpersonal disagreement. The primary aim of this research is to investigate the relationship between attachment orientation and cognitive openness – an indication of IH. Study 1 found that participants primed in a secure attachment condition demonstrated significantly greater cognitive openness to counterarguments with regard to (a)theistic belief than those in an ambivalent priming condition. Those identified as secure in their enduring dispositional attachment orientation exhibited significantly higher trait openness than those categorized as avoidant. Study 2 found that attachment anxiety, emotional valence, and the rated intelligence of an interlocutor significantly predicted participants’ openness to hear more counterarguments.

Keywords:

• Attachment
• intellectual
• humility
• cognitive
• openness
• emotion
• regulation
• priming

Acknowledgments

First, we must highlight the role of the Director of the Thrive Center, Dr. Justin Barrett, whose mentorship, guidance, and sage academic advice catalyzed the development of this research from its beginning. We are also grateful for the wisdom, insight, and humor of the other members of the intellectual humility team, Dr. Peter Samuelson, Dr. Ian Church, and Ariel Reid, which allowed for many enjoyable and fruitful collaborations. Thanks are also due to Dr. James Furrow who provided valuable feedback and support during various phases of theoretical exploration, methodological planning, and data analysis. We are indebted to Madeleine Kang whose thorough edits helped bring needed grammatical precision and clarity. Finally, we thank our wives and children for their constant support, encouragement, and inspiration, without which this work could never have been completed.

Funding

This work was supported by the John Templeton Foundation [grant number 15628] and was conducted at Fuller Theological Seminary.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the John Templeton Foundation [grant number 15628] and was conducted at Fuller Theological Seminary