Topic > Applying Attachment Theory to Romantic Relationships

The topic I chose for my essay is attachment theory and romantic relationships. I will first start with the story of a romantic relationship that will represent one of the attachment styles. Then, I will give a brief description of attachment theory and attachment styles, and finally, I will explain what kind of attachment styles one of the characters has. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Anna and Christopher met in high school. They started out as friends and eventually started dating. At first their relationship was great, but after they both got accepted into different colleges, the relationship worsened. Christopher began to lose self-esteem as Anna did not hang out with him as much as before and seemed more distant. Because of this, he became more clingy to Anna, which led to her becoming even more distant. He began to believe that Anna didn't love him and that sooner or later she would leave him. Attachment theory has two components: self-esteem and interpersonal trust. Self-esteem depends on the reaction others give you. For example, if someone is cold towards you or avoids you, you will feel like you are not appreciated or loved but, if the person seeks you out and wants to talk to you and be with you, you will feel loved and appreciated. Associated with self-esteem is interpersonal trust. Interpersonal trust is believing that others are trustworthy and reliable. Now that we know what the components of attachment theory are, attachment style is basically made up of these two attitudes, but it varies at levels. May have high self-esteem and interpersonal trust which is the secure attachment style. He may also have a low level of self-esteem and interpersonal trust, which is the fearful-avoidant attachment style. Finally, he may have high self-esteem and low interpersonal trust, which is the dismissive attachment style, or low self-esteem and high interpersonal trust, which is the preoccupied attachment style. Among all these attachment styles, the secure attachment style is the best as it creates long-lasting and satisfying relationships. In contrast, people with a fearful-avoidant attachment style are unable to form close relationships, and even if they do, the relationship will not be fulfilling. While people with a fearful avoidance style fail to form intimate relationships, people with a preoccupied attachment style form relationships easily because they desire the closeness and approval of others. This type of attachment is also destructive because they believe that they will be rejected because they think they don't deserve attention or love. On the other hand, people with a dismissive attachment style believe they deserve to have good relationships, but fear getting too close to others because they expect the worst from them. If I had to guess, Christopher's attachment style is the worried one. He always clings to me. If I go out with my friends instead of going out with him, he would say I don't love him. If I don't talk to him for a whole day, he starts to think that I want to leave him. The only reason I can't talk to him for a whole day is because I'm busy studying, or if I'm not studying, I'm busy with my part-time job. We don't need to be together 24/7. We both have our own lives to live. The thing that hurts me the most is the fact that he doesn't believe that I love him. We've been together since high school and yet he thinks I don't love him. Just because I want to spend time with my friends who I don't see often, doesn't mean I love him any less or don't. Christopher also started telling me that I don't support him very much..