Attachment and Spiritual Maturity 23
regulating (Stem, 1985). This review of the basic developmental processes relevant to
attachment set a foundation for exploring how attachment is carried from child to adult relationships.
Continuity of Attachment from Child to Adult Relationships
One of the hallmarks of attachment theory was its claim that attachment security
remains a key feature of relationships throughout the whole of life. In researching adult
attachments, it is not just a matter of how attachment security is shown in varied ways
over the lifespan, but also a question ofhow one relationship affects another relationship.
Hazen and Shaver (1994) examined the continuity between child and adult relationship attachment. Their research proposed a comprehensive theory ofattachment behavior
which forms the basis for intimate relationships during adulthood. In this section, Main' s
(1990) research on the continuity of attachment will first be discussed followed by Main
and Solomon's (1990) development of the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI). The AAI
shows continuity between the attachment principles formed in childhood and adult
behavior. Secondly, Kobak's et al. (1993) working model of attachment figure response
will be described. And finally, Hazen and Shaver's (1994) research on adult love
relationships will be discussed.
Mary Main (1990) showed that adults in their attachment behaviors activate
principles that were organized in their early infant attachment behaviors. She developed a
series of straightforward questions to elicit an account ofchildhood from which inferences
are drawn about attachment and an evaluation of those experiences are made. She was
therefore able to make strong claims about the ways in which insecurity in a person's
attachment relationship with parents in early childhood influences their relationships in
adult life (Main, Kaplan, & Cassidy, 1985).
The claim for continuity between insecurity in early attachment and later adult life
was identified in several different ways. First insecurity was seen when there was a
tendency to deny negative experiences. Secondly attachment was said to be insecure
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