Adult attachment representations and depressive symptoms: A meta-analysis

The results of this meta-analysis have important conceptual and practical implications for attachment-based prevention and intervention efforts, as they suggest that attachment representations, specifically insecure-preoccupied and unresolved, are associated with depressive symptoms in adulthood. Future research using longitudinal and intervention-based designs should examine the extent to which insecure-preoccupied and unresolved attachment lead to increased depressive symptoms, as well as the mechanisms by which these attachment patterns across the life span may increase vulnerability to depressive symptoms in adulthood.