One of attachment theory’s strengths is its predictive value, for example the ability of attachment quality to predict mental health. Norberg et al. (2018) investigated whether attachment style predicts compulsive hoarding, a new disorder in DSM-V. Three hundred and sixty-one self-identified hoarders completed a range of tests, including for clinical hoarding and attachment type. Anxious attachment predicted poor inability to tolerate distress and also predicted anthropomorphism (the tendency to attribute human characteristics to non-humans). Both intolerance of distress and anthropomorphism predicted hoarding behaviour. These findings support the importance of attachment as an influence on mental health.
Norberg, M. M., Crone, C., Kwok, C. and Grisham, J. R. (2018) ‘Anxious attachment and excessive acquisition: the mediating roles of anthropomorphism and distress intolerance’, Journal of Behavioural Addictions, Vol. 7, pp. 1–10.
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