Psychologists Jennifer Marin and Monica Guzman-Gonzalez of Universidad Catolica del Norte (Chile) have found out how attachment style affects the mental health of young bisexual women. The work was published in the International Journal of Sexual Health. The study involved 253 cisgender bisexual women aged 18 to 29. Cisgender means people whose gender identity matches the sex assigned at birth.
The participants first completed an online questionnaire assessing their anxiety and avoidance in close relationships - two components of so-called insecure attachment. Anxious attachment means fear of being abandoned and a strong need for confirmation of one's significance. Avoidant attachment is a tendency to distance oneself emotionally and not trust others. The women also reported symptoms of depression and anxiety over the past two weeks and underwent an extended assessment of well-being: subjective happiness, life satisfaction and social inclusion. A year later they answered the same questions again.
At the start of the study, participants showed a moderate level of anxious and avoidant attachment, a moderate level of psychological distress (a state of emotional tension and suffering) and relatively high overall well-being. Distress and well-being turned out to be moderately inversely correlated. A correlation is a statistical relationship that by itself does not prove causation. Such an inverse relationship confirms the two-component model: suffering and flourishing are related but distinct sides of mental health.
Analysis of the baseline data showed: the higher the insecure attachment (anxious or avoidant), the stronger the distress and the lower the well-being. The scientists then checked whether these styles predict changes a year later, adjusting for baseline levels of distress and well-being. It turned out that only avoidance predicted an increase in distress. Anxious attachment did not have a statistically significant effect on future distress after accounting for the baseline level.
For well-being, however, the picture is different: both anxious and avoidant attachment predicted its decline a year later. The models explained a much larger share of the variance in well-being than in distress. According to the authors, insecure attachment undermines the ability to maintain positive psychological resources more strongly and persistently.
The researchers suggest: emotional distancing may initially protect against stigma, but over time it harms the psyche. Constant exposure to discrimination or devaluation may reinforce an avoidant style. Ultimately, distrust of others makes a person more vulnerable to distress and hinders maintaining the connections needed for well-being.
The work has limitations. The data are based on self-reports, so bias is possible. Observation was conducted only at two points a year apart - this does not allow long-term trajectories to be traced or reverse effects to be identified, when poor mental health itself changes attachment. In addition, the results cannot be automatically transferred to other groups: the experience of young bisexual women in Chile depends on the cultural context and may not coincide with the experience of older people, transgender persons or people of a different sexual orientation. The authors call for further research in broader communities.
The psychologists believe that mental health support programs for marginalized groups should pay special attention to building secure attachment. Creating a trusting environment and help with emotional regulation can reduce distress and help young bisexual women build resources for a full life.