Relation of attachment and sibling position
Today's time offers an image of a hurried lifestyle, lack of time to communicate with others. We strive to achieve the best place at work, a higher salary, a prestigious position in society, and at the same time we forget how important relationships with others are. "Who you are with, you are.", a very popular phrase, which, however, has a great telling value. From an early age, we are shaped by those who surround us. It is no different even in adulthood. However, have we ever thought about the fact that it is these persons - people with whom we are from the first moments of our lives, that can have a significant influence on what kind of relationships we will build in adulthood? Mom, who has created a bond with us even before we come into the world, is a central figure for us. The family as the basic unit of society is in many cases, if it is complete, made up of mother, father and children. We are in contact with them most often and they shape us. We often judge people who succumb to drug addiction. What if it's just a compensation for the lack of love in their lives? Based on these questions, in our work we will try to offer an insight into how important the period of childhood and attachment is for the development of a personality with healthy relationships. The aim of our work is to point out the connection between relational bond and sibling position. In the theoretical part, we will focus on the issue of relational ties, define concepts such as bonding and attachment, and clarify Bowlby's theory of attachment. We will discuss the types and various attachment disorders. We will also provide a brief overview of sibling constellations and point out the influence of birth order on attachment. The empirical part consists of collecting data from respondents by random selection, we focus on family relationships and the difference in relationship ties determined by birth order. The method we used for the research of the given variables is a revised questionnaire in the Slovak version of How I experience close relationships, the original version of which was published under the name ECR – R (Experiences in Close Relationships) by the authors Fraley, Waller and Brennan in 2000.
In order for the child to form an adequate bond with the mother or father, these people must be sensitive and receptive to his needs, and respond appropriately to the signals that the child sends to them. It is common and, according to many authors, even normal, that sometimes parents interpret the signals incorrectly, and it happens that the child's needs are not met. However, if parents notice that their response was not appropriate to the child's needs, they can start to think again about what other response would be more appropriate. However, it often happens that parents project their own wishes onto the child. A parent wants his child to fall asleep as soon as possible because he himself is tired. However, it is possible that the child does not feel tired yet and would rather play with the parent. Here comes the "classic" conflict and it is understandable that parents will try to put their child to sleep even at the cost of keeping him relatively awake. Another such conflict can be the parents' ideas and desires about what kind of behavior their child should have. They thus transfer their expectations to the child and see him the way they want to see him. If there is a difference between the parents' ideas and the child's actual behavior, there are misunderstandings and misunderstandings in the relationship. In the case of often unjustified discrepancies, the child feels stress mainly from the fact that he cannot define boundaries, or reject the parents' wishes (Brisch, 2011). Bonding and attachment are important terms in this field, which are dealt with by many authors. This is precisely because the child is defenseless in his first years of life, needs to feel safe and is set to make contacts. Attachment to a close person acts on the child as a protective factor against social maladjustment. Bonding is a term often used but rarely defined. It is most often understood by the authors as a mutual, significant attachment that both parties want and expect to continue, and that, if broken or ended, may result in significant risk to the parties involved. Four practical means have been proposed to help demonstrate whether bonding has occurred or not. The first resource is time. Bonding is possible after three, at most six to twelve months of continuous daily contact. The second means is behavior. Research shows that attachment can be assessed by how a child behaves. Measuring parent-child interaction is a third way to demonstrate bonding. This includes, for example, the strength of mutual promises and commitments of both parties. A well "attached" parent is one who wants to raise their child indefinitely, through good times and bad, times of joy and sorrow. On the other hand, it is necessary to focus and consider the willingness of the child to respond and accept promises. Depending on the age of the child, the commitment can be expressed verbally or inferred from his behavior. A final means of assessing bonding is identification with family. The knowledge of the larger community indicates that the child is seen as a member of the family. The community knows who belongs to whom. A list of extended family, teachers, friends, and neighbors can be accepted to demonstrate kinship using this criterion. If the child is placed in a children's home, it is the responsibility of the agency to consider the environment in which the child will reside when selecting foster parents. It is important to focus on environmental, physical, emotional, health and educational benefits and risks. Also, the existence of other children in the household of the foster family is of fundamental importance for the choice (Kenny & Pollack, 2015). Since parents are the most important figures in the early period, we offer brief characteristics of the meaning of father and mother. In relation to the child, fathers show their affection mostly through physical contact. Playing with father is more exciting for the child. The father is perceived as the breadwinner of the family, the one who takes care of the mother and children, ensures material security. When it comes to nurturing, fathers are slower and show less automaticity, but are capable of strong attachment immediately after birth. The mother is the one who helps the child learn about the world and provides him with security. The bond between mother and child is already formed during the intrauterine stage. Mostly, their relationship is established verbally.
Loss and grief when a child is not born, premature birth, mother's uncertainty regarding the child, its state of health and later development, long-term separation of the child from the mother, alcohol, drugs or the mother's immaturity for the arrival of the child. All these can be obstacles in the creation of bonding (Matulníková, 2011). Attachment is understood as attachment or fastening. Attachment, especially between people, is defined as affection or devotion, even love, although it is clear that there is also a form of unsuccessful attachment, even harmful, when a person is harmed. Attachment, however, cannot be understood as a synonym for the word love or affection. It is also not an overall descriptor of the parent-child relationship, which includes other parent-child interactions, such as feeding, stimulation, play, and problem solving (Prior & Glaser, 2006).
Types of relationship bond
The author Brisch in his book Safe Relational Bond (2011) points out that the infant period is the most important for the formation of a bond. Since there are different types, it is good to recognize them and the differences are visible by the end of the first year of the child's life. Furthermore, this author states that approximately 60-65% will form a secure relationship bond with their mother by the end of the first year of life. 55% of children form this bond with their father. Only 25% create an insecure-avoidant relationship and 10% an insecure-ambivalent (anxious) relationship with their mothers.
Children whose caregivers react sensitively to their stimuli, show them love, give them a sense of security, know that they can also express their negative emotions, are able to create a certain relational bond. Solving problems and difficulties is organized and safe on the part of caregivers, thus the child seeks contact and proximity to these people. He knows exactly that he can approach if he is desperate, because he is sure that the reaction of the other party will be sensitive. Insecure-avoidant relational attachment - this type of attachment can also be considered organized, because the child knows with certainty how the caregiver will react. However, mostly it is mocking, condemning, ignoring the child. Based on these reactions, the child can conclude that he will not come to the caregiver in a similar desperate situation. This avoidance strategy is also unsafe because it increases the risk of the child's adjustment problems. Children whose caregivers react inconsistently, unpredictably, whose behavior includes ways in which the child expects his needs to be taken care of, form an anxious attachment. The child hopes that the caregiver cannot always react this way. Mostly, this bond is associated with an increased risk of a child's poor social and emotional adjustment. About 15% of children from environments with little psychosocial risk and about 82% of those in high-risk situations do not use any of the three mentioned organized strategies to deal with stress and negative emotions. These children have a confused disorganized attachment type. This disorientated, disorganized relational bond is best illustrated by the unusual behavior of the parents, also referred to as frightening, dissociative, sexual, or otherwise atypical. There is evidence to suggest that caregivers who exhibit these behaviors often have unresolved issues of their own from the past, such as repressed grief, unresolved emotional, physical, or sexual trauma, or are otherwise traumatized (eg, PTSD, traumatized victims of domestic violence) (Benoit, 2004).
The most famous types of relationships in adulthood are: a) certain/autonomous mental representation of an emotional bond – individuals consider an emotional bond to be important, they can report on both positive and negative aspects, b) rejecting/depreciating mental representation of emotional ties – individuals avoid relational ties, cannot describe any experiences from childhood. Memories either idealize or negatize, c) complex mental representation of an emotional bond - individuals often negativeize their childhood memories and express anger when recounting them. They seem confused and contradict each other many times, they are also mostly confused in relation to people, d) unresolved / disorientated mental representation of an emotional bond - it is common especially in individuals who experienced trauma in childhood, such as sexual abuse, parental alcoholism, abuse. In adulthood, these individuals attach great importance to details in relationships (Štefánková, 2011).
Children can create many bonding relationships and thereby improve their social behavior patterns. Who the child becomes attached to is primarily determined by the people with whom the child is most often in contact, who takes care of him and also by the composition of the household in which the child lives. We can't doubt that a baby first bonds with its mother, not to mention the bond they have formed between them already during the prenatal period. Other characters to bond with are likely to be: father, older siblings, grandparents. From these people, the child chooses his main character, but also a secondary character to create a bond. According to various researches, the biological mother is the central (main) figure, but this role can also be played by others, for example, a person who takes care of the child and treats the child in a maternal way (Bowlby, 2010).
Attachment failures
A child who has attachment problems is the one who has failed the first important key that is supposed to move him through the developmental periods. With such a failure, there is a breach of trust, which we can observe even today. People have trouble confiding in someone and building relationships that help them feel better. Attachment disorders can cause, for example, difficulties in functioning, delayed or disrupted development, and still non-constructive patterns of behavior in children. Symptoms that indicate that the relational bond may be disturbed are, for example, the following: a crying child does not calm down even after mom or dad takes him in his arms, the child does not solve a stressful situation or solves his needs by himself, the child does not show emotions, does not respond to stimuli, interactions with others, the child has insufficiently developed empathy or does not know how to express it (Ježková & Černá, 2013). Among the basic ones, the author Brisch (2011) lists 2 attachment disorders. The undifferentiated disorder of the relational bond manifests itself mainly in children with neglected emotional education, they do not have a specific person with whom they would have formed a relational bond. Children are characterized by a smaller head and also overall short stature - this is often associated with the fact that the child is neglected, and thus the creation of growth hormone and hormones that create a neural network in the brain is limited. The disorder of the relational bond associated with the blockage of attachment behavior is significant for children in whom the creation of a bond with the person for the relational bond failed, because the adult person who was supposed to offer the child safety, support, love and tenderness, on the contrary, behaved violently and measuredly towards the child. However, the child creates a relationship with this person, but it is accompanied by fear and anxiety, the child is tearful and even small negative stimuli can disturb him. The author Brisch also defines this type as "pathological attachment to the perpetrator", where the perpetrator is an abusive relationship person.
Bowlby's attachment theory
"I see the particular advantage of this paradigm in that it allows us to conceptualize in a new and illuminating way the human tendency to form strong bonds with certain other people and to explain many forms of emotional and personality disorders, including anxiety, anger, depression, and emotional alienation, which are produced by unwanted separation and loss." (Hašto, 2005, p. 69)
According to Bowlby, behavior during the formation of a relational bond and behavior during an already formed relational bond has an instinctive nature. During the relational bond, the child also develops various other forms of attachment behavior that are activated only when necessary. For example, if something causes fear in the child, or if the child is in a strange environment, or when tired. Such attachment behavior will disappear if the environment is intimately familiar to the child or if he sees a person with whom he has a relationship. Bowlby further assumes in his theory that the creation, maintenance, but also the interruption of a relational bond is associated with a great rush of emotions. He describes establishing a relationship bond as falling in love, maintaining a bond as love. Loss is associated with sadness and fear, the threat of loss causes anxiety, but it is very likely that both also cause anger in the child. A child experiences a strong bond as joy, security, peace and well-being (Hašto, 2005).
Sibling Constellations
Most people know what place they have in their family, but few are interested in what functions, duties and rights result from a given position of an individual in the family. Alfred Adler, a representative of individual psychology, an Austrian psychiatrist and psychologist, was the first to point out that the birth order of a child largely affects his personality. It is quite obvious that first-borns, or only children, are strongly motivated individuals who pursue their goals. Middle children are more oriented towards art, but their personality is difficult to estimate, they are described as unpredictable. The Benjamins of the family, or the youngest, are often the ones who leave responsibility to others, but they are good entertainers, extroverts, and the more or less negative thing is that, thanks to their position, they can easily manipulate others. However, we cannot claim that precisely thanks to the order of birth we can determine the type of the given personality. There are 5 basic birth order positions: 1. oldest – first-born child, 2. second-born, 3. middle, 4. youngest, 5. only child (Szobiová, 2007).
The influence of birth order on the type of attachment
Bowlby hypothesized that the formation of a relational bond in early childhood is the basis for future relationships. Hazan and Shaver used attachment theory as a framework for understanding romantic relationships in adulthood. They hypothesized not only the influence of earlier relationships on adult relationships, but that romantic love itself is a process of becoming attached and shares similarities with childhood attachment to a relational person. In their research, respondents were asked to select the description that best characterized their bond. Adults with different styles differed, as predicted, in the way they experienced love. The results showed, for example, that people with secure attachment had happy, trusting, and friendly relationships as adults, while those with anxious attachment were characterized by jealousy, obsessive preoccupation with their partner, and emotional ups and downs. Hazan and Shaver's research, as reported by Collins and Read (1990), was an important step toward discovering the relationship between early attachment in childhood and experiences of love in adulthood. A 2008 study at Mercyhurst University in Pennsylvania by researchers Emily McGuirk and Terry Pettijohn was based largely on the idea that birth order can influence people's behavior and relationships. It was hypothesized that only children and oldest siblings would be most likely to have the same type of relational attachment. The prediction for the youngest and middle children spoke of a different type of bond. 54.17% of the research participants reported secure attachment, 39.58% avoidant and 6.25% anxious. Of the participants whose position in the family was intermediate, up to 57.14% showed uncertain attachment. 66.66% of only children were safely restrained. These results may indicate that the formation of a relational bond, despite the non-significant relationship between the bond and sibling position, may also be influenced by the position the child has. Middle children have to compete with their siblings for their parents' attention. On the other hand, the fact that they receive love not only from their parents, but also from other adults around them can help only children to create a certain relational bond.
Research file and method
The research group in the research presented by us consisted of 100 respondents, of which 71 were women, representing 71% and 29-29% men. They participated in the research voluntarily, were informed about the purpose of the research and the preservation of their anonymity. Respondents filled out the questionnaires online. The age category was not strictly determined, so respondents aged 17 to 49 took part in the research. The highest representation was 22 years old (20 respondents). The average age of women was 22.94 and the average age of men was 22.34.
The revised ECR-R (Experiences in Close Relationships Inventory-Revised) questionnaire created by Fraley (2000) was used in the research. The original version was created in 1998 by Brennan, Clark and Shaver. It was edited into the Slovak version by Biesčad and Hašt in 2009. The translation from the original version is considered adequate. This is also evidenced by the high internal consistency of the individual items of the questionnaire. The scale consists of two subscales of 18 items each - the first eighteen focused on relationship anxiety, the second eighteen on relationship avoidance. Respondents answer using a seven-point Likert-type scale (1 - completely disagree to 7 - completely agree). To determine internal consistency, we calculated Cronbach's alpha (α = 0.921) and we consider the results sufficient for applying this tool. Statements such as: "I am afraid that I will lose my partner's love", "I worry enough about my relationships", belong to the scale of relationship anxiety. "I prefer not to get too close to my partner.", "I feel uncomfortable when I reveal my inner self to my partner." they are statements from the relational avoidance scale (Lečbych & Pospíšilíková, 2012). Another part of the questionnaire was questions about age, gender, number of siblings and sibling position, which the participants had to answer.
Research hypotheses
General hypothesis number 1: We hypothesize that there is a difference in the type of relationship bond between men and women.
- Hypothesis 1a: We assume that there is a higher probability of the occurrence of a secure relationship in women than in men.
General hypothesis number 2: We assume that the number of siblings has an impact on the type of relationship bond.
- Hypothesis 2a: We assume that the first-born and the youngest have the same type of relational bond.
- Hypothesis 2b: We assume that there is a high prevalence of a certain relational bond among only children.
- Hypothesis 2c: We assume that there is a difference in the type of relationship bond between second-borns and only children.
- Hypothesis 2d: We assume that women occupying the position of second-born in the family have an avoidant type of relational bond.
General hypothesis number 3: We assume that there is a significant connection between the type of attachment and sibling constellations.
Analysis of results
We processed the collected data using the statistical program SPSS 21.0 (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). From the questionnaire How I experience close relationships, we obtained data from the respondents and evaluated what type of relationship bond they have. The range was wide, with an interesting finding being that approximately the same percentage of women and men hold the same type of relationship bond. The smallest representation in both sexes was the avoidant relational bond, the most frequent was a certain type of relational bond (see Tab. 1).
Tab. 1 Types of relationships in men and women
As part of our research, we focused on the types of relational ties and their differences based on sibling position. The research involved 6 only children, 39 first-borns, 32 second-borns, 13 the youngest participants and 10 those who came from multiple families and held a different order, such as the fourth of five siblings. In the table we present an overview of the occurrence of bonding based on sibling position. The score achieved in the questionnaire spoke about the type of bond, the participants also stated what position they hold.
Tab. 2 Frequency of occurrence of the type of relationship based on sibling position
Among women, a certain type of relationship bond prevailed. 33.3% of women had an uncertain type of attachment, which was among the most common. 28.6% had an anxious relationship type and the same number, represented by 19.05%, had a secure and avoidant relationship. We present these data graphically.
Graph 1 Occurrence of types of relationship bond among second-born women
Both women and men achieved the same percentage values in attachment types. A slight deviation occurred in women with an anxious relationship bond, where they were less represented than men. Using chi-square, we came to the conclusion that the difference between men and women in detention is not significant. In order to reach more relevant conclusions, we decided to equate the groups of men and women to make them comparable. We selected women of similar age to the twenty-nine men in our research. The average age of men was 22.34, the average age of women was 22.37. Again using chi-square, we observed a relationship. Even in this case, the significance was higher than 0.05, which did not confirm the relationship between gender and bonding. Therefore, bonds between men and women in our research occur in the same proportions.
First-borns and the youngest showed secure attachment in most cases (61.5% of securely attached first-borns and 46.1% of securely attached youngest). However, among the youngest there was also a significant representation of insecurely attached (30.8%), which rarely occurred among first-borns (17.9%). We accept the hypothesis of similarity in the type of relationship among these participants, as we did not find a statistically significant difference. We also add a graphic representation of the occurrence of types of relational ties in the first-born and the youngest.
Chart 2 Prevalence of the type of relationship among the first-born and the youngest
Foreign research mainly mentions the presence of a certain relational bond among only children (up to 66.66%), which we also assumed in our research. This phenomenon was not confirmed in the file we examined. Anxious relational bond among only children could be caused by the measured approach of parents during childhood or negative relational experiences of the participants. This phenomenon could be the subject of further investigation.
The difference in custody between second-born and only children was considerable. The higher percentage of insecurely attached second-borns (37.5%) could be based on competition for parental love with other siblings. A significance higher than 0.05 confirms that the similarity in the type of bond among the participants in these positions is not present.
Analyzing the types of relationship attachment among women with second births, we came to the conclusion that approximately one third of them were insecurely attached or had an anxious type of relationship attachment. It is generally known that women experience detachment or separation from a loved one more emotionally, which may have caused the formation of these types of bonds in connection with previous autopsies (own experiences).
In the case of multiple families and representation of a certain position, it was shown that the majority of participants have an uncertain or anxious attachment type (40%). We assume that it was the number of siblings that could determine the occurrence of these bonds among the participants.
The connection between the type of attachment and the sibling position was partially confirmed, partial hypotheses proved the connection in some aspects. Using Cramer's V with a significance value of 0.002 and a correlation coefficient value of 0.365, we came to point out the moderate effect of sibling position on relational bonding.
DISCUSSION
Adler, as one of the few theorists, attributed great importance to the family and the sibling constellation. Based on his theory, we assumed a significant relationship between the variables - relational bond and sibling constellations.
We established the hypotheses in such a way that they point to similarities or differences in variables, whether based on gender or specific position. Based on theoretical knowledge from previous research in this area, such as Del Guidice's 2009 research, which pointed to a higher percentage of male avoidance and female anxiety based on girls scoring higher on questions about mother-child interaction, the researchers concluded that this is why the classification of girls may be shifted more towards the secure or anxious category, while the absence of this for boys interactions and increased aggression on the part of parents causes the emergence of an avoidant or disorganized bond, we assumed a difference in the type of relational bond in men and women. Individual variations within gender are considered by the authors to be caused by differences in children's ability to regulate emotions and behavior, which correlates with the quality of attachment (Toth, Lakatos & Gervai, 2013). Research by Karina Weichold from 2013 yielded the following results: 70% of girls securely attached, 60% of boys insecurely attached (of which 47% had a disorganized type of attachment). Weicholdová pointed out that the emergence of disorganized attachment in boys could have been caused by a disturbed family environment. Compared to these results, our research did not show a significant difference between men and women in the type of attachment. We hypothesized that this may have been due to the asymmetry of the research sample, so we compared men with a select, age-matched, group of women and compared their relationship types. However, the difference was not confirmed.
Furthermore, we focused attention on the ties of the participants based on their position in the family. Specifically, we examined the similarity of attachment between firstborns and the youngest, as well as differences in attachment between secondborns and only children. Hypotheses regarding these relationships were confirmed for us. 61.5% of the first born and 46.1% of the youngest with a certain relational bond, which shows agreement when compared to the research of McGuirk and Pettijohn. As for the difference in bonding between second-born and only children, it was to be expected, since the second-born position is disadvantaged by the fact that one has to compete for attention, while the only-child position brings with it attention and love not only from the parents, but also from others in the neighborhood. The rejection of the hypothesis about the type of attachment in only children was surprising, as we expected secure attachment of only children with great certainty, but up to 66% showed an anxious attachment type, which also contradicted the research of McGuirk and Pettijohn, in which up to 66% of securely attached only children were in the research. The author Brisch mentions that the parents of children with an anxious relational attachment probably also have this type of attachment. The subject of further closer investigation could be the bonds of parents of only children who participated in our research.
By calculating the correlation coefficient, we tried to point out the connection between attachment and sibling constellations, since we were investigating a relationship, not causality. The result was statistically significant, and the order effect on relational attachment showed a moderate degree (Cramer's V = 0.365; p = 0.002).
CONCLUSION
The main purpose of our work was to point out the connection between relational bond and sibling position. In the theoretical part, we defined concepts such as attachment and bonding, and subsequently differentiated them. Furthermore, we pointed out different types of relational ties and also attachment disorders. We have briefly provided information about Bowlby's well-known attachment theory. We tried to summarize the knowledge about sibling positions. We have offered an overview of research in the field of relational bonding in connection with the sibling position.
The aim of our research was to point out the connection between relational bond and sibling position. In view of the given goal, we established relevant hypotheses regarding this issue. The general hypotheses were the areas we wanted to focus on, i.e. finding the existence of differences in the type of bond based on gender, as well as the difference in the type of bond in connection with sibling constellations, such as the assumption that the first-born and the youngest have the same type of bond. Our results showed some similarity with the results of Guirk and Pettijohn's research. A surprising finding was that up to 66% of the only children in our research group are individuals with an anxious type of attachment, while in the research mentioned above, 66% of the only children had a secure type of attachment. The hypothesis assuming the same type in the first-born and the youngest was confirmed, which also corresponds to the mentioned research. Given that we have come to these conclusions using correlations, we cannot say what is cause or effect. Partial hypotheses show a certain connection between attachment and sibling positions, Cramer's correlation coefficient confirmed the significant connection between the given variables, but showed only a moderate effect of the order's influence on bonding. As Bowlby himself states in his theory, the influence of family environment on a person's personality can be stronger than genetics or physical trauma, so it seems that the influence of family environment can be stronger than birth order, that is, within a family, the influence is consistent regardless of order. However, this is purely theoretical and could be the subject of further investigation.
We take into account that the results of our research can be influenced by several factors. A big role can be played, for example, by a negative previous experience in a relationship, which resulted in a change in a person's attitude towards others. In humans, such an experience could cause the emergence of fear of rejection, abandonment, or discomfort in a situation where a person is dependent on another. Further research could report more on the relationships of the probands in adulthood, or, on the contrary, deal with past, unsuccessful relationships that could have an impact on the development of current relationships.
In conclusion, we would like to draw attention to the importance of relational ties. Based on the theory, we express the opinion that it is beneficial if the children in the family are treated equally by the parents. It is difficult and it is difficult to realize whether the attitude that a parent takes towards a child is the same for all children. However, for a stable and positive personality development, creating a bond with at least one person is very important.
We consider it correct to support parents in avoiding unnecessary labeling of their children or favoring one of the children, and not to be afraid to seek, for example, psychological professional help in matters of upbringing and rapprochement.
A relationship with a parent filled with love and security can be a quality investment for a child's future relationships.
Author: Mgr. Barbora Molčanová Bibliography
Bowlby, J. (2010). Bonding: Theory of the quality of early relations between mother and child. Prague: Portal. ISBN 9788073676704
Brisch, K. (2011). Secure attachment: Attachment in pregnancy and the first years of life. Educational program for parents SAFE. Trenčín Publishing House. ISBN 978-80-88952-67-1
Benoit, D. (2004). Infant-parent attachment: Definition, types, antecedents, measurement and outcome. In: Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health. [online]. Available at: http://tinyurl.com/zy9ou9z
Collins, N.L., Read, S.J. (1990). Adult attachment, working models, and relationship quality in dating couples. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 644-663. [online]. ISSN 1939 - 1315. Available at: http://tinyurl.com/zcfau4k
Del Giudice, M. (2009). Sex, attachment, and the development of reproductive strategies. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 32, 1–67. [online]. Available at: https://marcodgdotnet.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/delgiudice_2009_reproductive_strategies-bbs.pdf
Fraley, R.C., Waller, N.G., & Brennan, K.A. (2000). An item-response theory analysis of self-report measures of adult attachment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78, 350-365.
Hašto, J. (2005. Relational bond: To the roots of love and anxiety. Trenčín: Vydavateľstvo F. ISBN 808895228X
Ježková, Z., Černá, R. (2013). Attachment: about the importance of emotional bonds in life, about its disorders and treatment. [online]. Available at: http://www.sancedetem.cz/srv/www/content/pub/cs/clanky/attachment-o-dulezitosti-citoveho-pouta-v-zivote-o-jeho-poruchach-a-leceni-89.html
Kenny, J., Pollack, D. (2015). Bonding in the Child Placement Process: A Psychological and Legal Perspective. In: Policy and Practice. 2015, vol. 73, no. 6. [online]. Available at: https://www.questia.com/magazine/1G1-439633093/bonding-in-the-child-placement-process-a-psychological
Lečbych, M., Pospíšilíková, K. (2012). The Czech version of the Experiences in Close Relationships (ECR) scale: A pilot study of the assessment of relational bonds in adulthood. In: E - psychology: Electronic magazine ČMPS, vol. 6, No. 3. [online]. ISSN 1802 - 8853. Available at: http://e-psycholog.eu/pdf/lecbych-pospisilikova.pdf
Matulníková, Ľ. (2011). The importance of bonding in the early postnatal period. Bonding. In Mosty k rodine - magazine about social work with family and children, vol. 2, no. 2, p. 6. [online]. ISSN 1338-2713. Available at: http://www.mostykrodine.sk/mosty4down.pdf
McGuirk, E., Pettijohn, T. (2008). Birth Order and Romantic Relationship Styles and Attitudes in College Students. [online]. Available at: http://www.tpettijohn.net/academic/McGuirkPettijohn_BirthOrderandRomanticRelationships.pdf
Prior, V., Glaser, D. (2006). Understanding Attachment and Attachment Disorders: Theory, Evidence and Practice. Jesica Kingsley Publishers London. ISBN eBook 1846425468. 288 p.
Szobiová, E. (2007). Personality and creativity in Adlerian psychology. In: Psychology and child pathopsychology, 2007, no. 1-2. [online]. ISSN 0555-5574. Available at: http://tinyurl.com/grqydm4
Štefánková, Z. (2011). Emotional attachment and social adaptation in early adolescence. Dissertation work. Brno: Masaryk University, Faculty of Social Studies. Department of Psychology.
Toth, I., Lakatos, K., Gervai, J. (2013). Gender differences in children's responses to attachment story stems: True or artefacts? In: The International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development Bulletin. [online]. Available at: http://real.mtak.hu/6430/1/real_6430.pdf
Weichold, K. (2013). Introduction to New Directions in Early Attachment Research. In: The International Society for the Study of Behavioral Development Bulletin. [online]. Available at: http://www.issbd.org/resources/files/434a8cc2ec6499fea9a5554bc3918d3d