PTSD and Attachment Styles in Romantic Relationships

By Jay Morse & Heidi Radunovich, PhD

Military deployment can lead to challenges in maintaining healthy relationships with spouses or partners.  In this preliminary study [1], researchers examined the relationship between a military member’s symptoms of PTSD and the couple’s attachment styles.

A total of 20 heterosexual couples (18 of whom were married) were recruited from the Army and National Guard as part of pilot study of stressful couple interactions.  To be included in the study, the military member had to have experienced at least one deployment and the partner had to be in a committed relationship with the military member at the time of deployment.  Participants (both the military member and their partner) completed surveys to measure PTSD symptoms of the military member and the Multi-Item Measure of Adult Romantic Attachment (MIMARA).

In this study, attachment style is considered “the attachment bond that exists within a relationship”.  Of 3 attachment styles (secure, avoidant, and anxious/ambivalent), the researchers examined avoidant and anxious/ambivalent styles. Analyses suggest the following:

1. The spouse’s report of the service member’s PTSD symptoms was related to the military member’s avoidant attachment style.
2. The spouse’s report of PTSD symptoms was related to their own avoidant attachment style.

While this was a small and preliminary study, it might be helpful for clinicians treating military service members with PTSD to keep in mind the role of attachment behaviors in the relationship, and how this might intersect with both symptoms and treatment.

Reference:

[1] Frey, L.M., Blackburn, K.M., Werner-Wilson, R.J., Parker, T., & Wood, N.D. (2011). Posttraumatic stress disorder, attachment, and intimate partner violence in a military sample: A preliminary analysis. Journal of Feminist Family Therapy, 23(3/4), 218-230. doi:10.1080/08952833.2011.604530

This post was written by Jay Morse & Heidi Radunovich, PhD, members of the MFLN FamilyDevelopment (FD) team which aims to support the development of professionals working with military families. Find out more about the Military Families Learning Network FD concentration on our website, on Facebook, on Twitter, YouTube, and on LinkedIn.