Journal of Adult Development, Vol. 12, No. 1, January 2005 ( C 2005)DOI: 10.1007/s10804-005-1324-z

Brief Report

Husbands and Wives Attachment Orientationsand Depressive Symptoms: Predictors of Positiveand Negative Conflict Behaviors in the Marriage

Jennifer F. Marchand-Reilly1,3 and Marla Reese-Weber2

The present study examined both husbands and wives attachment orientations and depres-sive symptoms in predicting reports of marital conflict behaviors. Married couples (N = 60)completed questionnaires to assess their attachment orientations, depressive symptoms,and perceptions of positive and negative conflict behaviors in the marital relationship.Using hierarchical regression analyses, statistical models were tested wherein husbands andwives reports of marital conflict behaviors were regressed on their own and their spousesattachment orientations and depressive symptoms. The results suggest that both attachmentorientations and depressive symptoms were important predictors of reported marital conflictbehaviors. However, different predictors were found for husbands and wives reports ofpositive and negative conflict behaviors. In general, spouses attributes played only a smallrole in predicting reports of marital conflict behaviors.

KEY WORDS: attachment; depressive symptoms; marriage; conflict behaviors.

A considerable body of evidence supports thenotion that behaviors displayed during marital con-flict are important predictors of relationship func-tioning and marital dissolution (e.g., Gottman, 1994).Given the important consequences of marital conflictbehaviors, identifying the variables that may predictconflict behaviors has become a focus of researchinvestigation. The present study examines the roleof individuals and their spouses attachment orien-tations and depressive symptoms in their reports ofpositive and negative marital conflict behaviors.

According to attachment theory (Bowlby,1969/1982), internal working models of self andothers develop in the context of early parentchildinteractions. One outgrowth of internal working

1Human Development and Family Studies, The PennsylvaniaState University, Mont Alto, Pennsylvania.

2Department of Psychology, Illinois State University, Normal,Illinois.

3To whom correspondence should be addressed at HumanDevelopment and Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State Uni-versity, 1 Campus Drive, Mont Alto, Pennsylvania 17237; e-mail:jxm570@psu.edu.

models of attachment is attachment orientations.Attachment orientations are a set of expectanciesthat serve as a guide for ones own behaviors, aswell as expectations for others behaviors in intimaterelationships (Simpson & Rholes, 1998). Becauseconflict threatens the security of the relationship,Kobak and Duemmler (1994) have suggested thatconflict is one context in which the behaviorsassociated with a particular attachment orientationare likely to be observed. Indeed, research has shownthat insecure attachment orientations are associatedwith fewer constructive problem-solving behaviors(Kobak & Hazan, 1991).

In addition to attachment orientations, researchhas found depression to be an important correlate ofmarital conflict behavior (Marchand & Hock, 2000).Symptoms of depression, such as hostility and irri-tability, as well as dysphoria and withdrawnavoidantbehavior, may interfere with an individuals abilityto use adaptive behaviors to resolve conflict. Studiesbased on married couples have found that depres-sive symptoms are related to fewer problem-solvingbehaviors (Schmaling & Jacobson, 1990) and more

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86 Marchand-Reilly and Reese-Weber

avoidance and/or attacking behaviors (Marchand &Hock, 2000).

Although most empirical research on conflictstrategies has examined attachment orientationsand depressive symptoms separately, Karney andBradbury (1995) have argued that both could beconsidered enduring vulnerabilities that have animpact on marital processes by affecting an individ-uals ability to adapt to challenges in the maritalrelationship. Thus, the joint consideration of these at-tributes may explain marital conflict behaviors betterthan either attribute considered alone.

The aforementioned research suggests that anindividuals attachment orientations and depres-sive symptoms are significant predictors of theirown reports of conflict strategies. However, lessis known about the role of spouses attributes inconflict strategies. In one study, Kobak and Hazan(1991) found that husbands attachment predictedwives negative behaviors, and wives attachmentpredicted husbands positive behaviors. Regardingspouses depressive symptoms, Marchand and Hock(2000) found that husbands and wives own de-pressive symptoms, but not their spouses depressivesymptoms, were significant predictors of their self-reported conflict resolution behaviors.

The present study extends previous research byexamining attachment orientations and depressivesymptoms in the prediction of reported marital con-flict behaviors in a community sample of long-termmarried couples. Both husbands and wives reportsof their own attachment orientations and depressivesymptoms were used to predict each spouses reportsof positive and negative marital conflict behaviors.Individuals attachment orientations and depressivesymptoms were expected to predict their own reportsof marital conflict behaviors (Kobak & Hazan, 1991;Marchand & Hock, 2000). Additionally, spouses at-tachment orientations were expected to predict indi-viduals reports of marital conflict behaviors (Kobak& Hazan, 1991). A specific prediction could not bemade about spouses depressive symptoms since ithas not been found to predict individuals reportsof marital conflict behaviors in prior research(Marchand & Hock, 2000).

METHOD

Sixty married couples were recruited via theirlate adolescents participation in a larger study. Lateadolescents agreed to provide their parents mailing

addresses in exchange for extra course credit. Par-ents were mailed questionnaires and a stamped andaddressed envelope for returning the questionnaires.Wives and husbands mean ages were 47.5 (SD =4.6) and 49.0 (SD = 5.1), respectively. Couples av-erage annual income was $81,302 (SD = $30,036),and their mean length of marriage was 21.9 years(SD = 8.9). Most couples represented Caucasianbackgrounds (98.3%).

Instruments

Conflict Behaviors

The Managing Affect and Differences Scale(MADS; Arellano & Markman, 1995) was used to as-sess perceptions of typical conflict strategies in dyadicinteractions. This 109-item measure contains scalestheoretically designed to assess both positive andnegative communication. In the present study, thealpha coefficients for positive and negative strategieswere .97 and .91, respectively, for both husbands andwives.

Attachment Orientations

The 18-item Adult Attachment Scale (AAS;Collins & Read, 1990) was used to assess three under-lying dimensions of attachment orientations: comfortwith closeness, comfort depending on others, andanxiety over experiencing abandonment and rejec-tion. In the present study, Cronbachs alphas forthe Closeness, Dependency, and Anxiety subscalesranged from .68 to .89.

Depression

The 20-item Center for Epidemiological StudiesDepression Scale (CES-D; Radloff, 1977) was usedto assess depressive symptoms. In the present study,alpha coefficients were .88 and .89 for wives andhusbands, respectively.

RESULTS

Means and standard deviations for the studyvariables are presented in Table I. The relationsamong the study variables were first examined using

Predictors of Positive and Negative Conflict Behaviors in the Marriage 87

Table I. Correlations Among the Study Variables

Variable 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

1. Wife closeness 1.002. Husband closeness .03 1.003. Wife dependency .46 .19 1.004. Husband dependency .12 .63 .20 1.005. Wife anxiety .33 .27 .50 .21 1.006. Husband anxiety .00 .36 .14 .37 .28 1.007. Wife depressive .33 .15 .62 .07 .45 .29 1.00

symptoms8. Husband depressive .07 .50 .01 .41 .16 .15 .04 1.00

symptoms9. Wives positive .22 .18 .38 .26 .55 .41 .51 .24 1.00

strategies10. Husbands negative .05 .42 .29 .45 .32 .37 .17 .41 .62 1.00

strategies11. Wives negative .25 .26 .30 .33 .50 .52 .44 .31 .78 .48 1.00

strategies12. Husbands negative .13 .42 .14 .58 .26 .45 .13 .50 .49 .69 .56 1.00

strategiesM 18.5 17.7 19.6 18.8 13.3 11.4 11.2 8.1 319.1 316.4 66.7 65.9SD 6.2 4.1 4.5 4.6 6.2 4.1 8.5 7.5 43.3 40.7 17.2 15.6p < .05. p < .01.

Pearson correlations and are presented in Table I.Next, data were subjected to hierarchical regressionanalyses. On the basis of the perspective that at-tachment relationships in adulthood reflect styles ofattachment that develop in infancy and childhood(Hazan & Shaver, 1987), attachment orientationswere entered into the regression equation beforedepressive symptoms. Further,because our primaryfocus was to determine whether spouses attributespredicted variance above and beyond those of indi-viduals attributes, spouses attachment orientationswere entered after controlling for individuals at-tachment orientations. Similarly, spouses depressivesymptoms were entered after controlling for indi-viduals depressive symptoms. Each dimension ofattachment (closeness, dependency, and anxiety) wasconsidered separately along with depressive symp-toms in the regression equation.

Predicting Husbands and Wives ReportedConflict Behaviors

When husbands positive conflict behaviors werebeing predicted from husbands and wives comfortwith closeness and depressive symptoms, the finalmodel was significant, R2 = .25, F(4, 49) = 3.91, p