Abstract :
[en] First proposing a relational understanding of the child’s very first years, attachment theory has since then been taken into consideration in friendships and romantic relationships. Indeed, the internal working models (IWM) built upon early interactions are to be used on and on in many other situations as guidelines to understand what is going on for the self, this particular other and their specific relationship. Different attachment styles are thus likely to develop: secure or insecure (anxious/preoccupied, avoidant/dismissive, fearful). Considering teen dating, attachment is deeply involved, especially for two reasons: first, a certain questioning, but also re-actualization, of the attachment to parents; second, a new kind of attachment, meaning the one to the romantic partner.
These elements lead us to test hypotheses linking attachment to parents and attachment to romantic partners, but also linking these attachments to some teen dating characteristics, such as the age when first dating, the number of love relationships, the longest-lasting love relationship and the fear of intimacy. Our hypothesis was tested among 283 teenagers (mean age = 17.43) with two self-administered questionnaires (the Behavioral Systems Questionnaire and the Fear of Intimacy Scale). Our statistical analyses were made of Pearson Chi², Anova and Post-Hoc Fisher (LSD).
We see three types of interesting results. First, there is a significant relationship between attachment (parental and romantic attachments) and the number of love relationships and the fear of intimacy. Second, these relationships are differently established once considered the attachment modalities. Third, gender differences appear, girls looking more influenced by their attachment style than boys.
