John Bowlby’s attachment theory suggests that humans are born with a need to form a close emotional bond. For gay men, social stressors, such as discrimination and rejection, can negatively impact their attachment system and result in unhealthy romantic attachments.

In this episode, we take a look at the four distinct attachment styles and their respective characteristics so we can better understand our own attachment patterns.

Additional Resources:

• Attachment Theory (https://www.britannica.com/science/attachment-theory)
• Romantic Love Conceptualized as an Attachment Process (https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1987-21950-001)
• Love and Work: An Attachment-Theoretical Perspective (https://doi.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0022-3514.59.2.270)
• The Different Types of Attachment Styles (https://www.simplypsychology.org/attachment-styles.html)
• The Integrated Attachment and Sexual Minority Stress Model: Understanding the Role of Adult Attachment in the Health and Well-being of Sexual Minority Men (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4969073/#R5)
• Gay Males’ Intimate Relationship Quality: The Roles of Attachment Security, Gay Identity, Social Support, and Income (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1475-6811.00057)
• Shame, Internalized Homophobia, Identity Formation, Attachment Style, and the Connection to Relationship Status in Gay Men (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1557988309342002)
• Attachment and Relationship Satisfaction Among Gay Men: The Mediating Role of Well-Being (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13178-021-00634-2)
• Volitional Change in Adult Attachment: Can People Who Want to Become Less Anxious and Avoidant Move Closer Towards Realizing those Goals? (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1002/per.2226)
• How to Cope with an Insecure Attachment Type (https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/attachment/how-to-cope-with-an-insecure-attachment-type/)
• What's Your Attachment Style? Take This Quiz to Find Out (https://www.npr.org/2022/02/09/1079587715/whats-your-attachment-style-quiz)

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