Attachment, Self-Esteem, Worldviews, and Terror Management:Evidence for a Tripartite Security System
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2005
Keywords
attachment; self-esteem; worldviews; terror management; tripartite security system; attachment theory; terror management theory
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
http://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.88.6.999
Abstract
On the basis of prior work integrating attachment theory and terror management theory, the authors propose a model of a tripartite security system consisting of dynamically interrelated attachment, self-esteem, and worldview processes. Four studies are presented that, combined with existing evidence, support the prediction derived from the model that threats to one component of the security system result in compensatory defensive activation of other components. Further, the authors predicted and found that individual differences in attachment style moderate the defenses. In Studies 1 and 2, attachment threats motivated worldview defense among anxiously attached participants and motivated self-enhancement (especially among avoidant participants), effects similar to those caused by mortality salience. In Studies 3 and 4, a worldview threat and a self-esteem threat caused attachment-related proximity seeking among fearful participants and avoidance of proximity among dismissing participants. The authors' model provides an overarching framework within which to study attachment, self-esteem, and worldviews.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
No
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, v. 88, issue 6, p. 999-1013
Scholar Commons Citation
Hart, Joshua; Shaver, Phillip R.; and Goldenberg, Jamie L., "Attachment, Self-Esteem, Worldviews, and Terror Management:Evidence for a Tripartite Security System" (2005). Psychology Faculty Publications. 1511.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/psy_facpub/1511
