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Attachment style and coping in relation to posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms among adults living with HIV/AIDS

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Abstract

Research indicates that a significant proportion of people living with HIV/AIDS report symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Moreover, attachment style has been associated with psychological and behavioral outcomes among persons living with HIV/AIDS. Attachment style may influence the ability to cope with traumatic stress and affect PTSD symptoms. To examine the association between attachment style and coping with PTSD symptoms, we assessed 94 HIV-positive adults on self-report measures of posttraumatic stress, coping, and attachment style. In multiple regression analysis, avoidant attachment and emotion-focused coping were positively and significantly associated with greater PTSD symptomatology. Support was also found for the moderating effects of avoidant and insecure attachment styles on emotion-focused coping in relation to greater PTSD symptoms. Taken altogether, these results suggest that interventions that develop adaptive coping skills and focus on the underlying construct of attachment may be particularly effective in reducing trauma-related symptoms in adults living with HIV/AIDS.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to acknowledge the contributions of Margaret Chesney, Xin-Hua Chen, Sue DiMiceli, Ron Durán, Michael Edell, Jason Flamm, Michele Gill, Peea Kim, Dennis Israelski, David Lewis, José Montoya, Kristen O’Shea, Jan Porter, Rachel Power, Andrew Zolopa, and the men and women living with HIV/AIDS who devoted their time to assist in this research. Also, this research was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Grant #MH54930 (PI, David Spiegel, M.D.). Preparation of this manuscript was supported, in part, by NIMH Grant #MH63643 (PI: Cheryl Gore-Felton, Ph.D.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford University School of Medicine, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA, 94305-5718, USA

    Cheryl Gore-Felton & Cheryl Koopman

  2. School of Social Work, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Karni Ginzburg

  3. University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Maggie Chartier

  4. PGSP-Stanford Psy.D Consortium, Pacific Graduate School of Psychology, Palo Alto, CA, USA

    William Gardner & Elizabeth Weiss

  5. School of Public Health, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Jessica Agnew-Blais

  6. Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Elizabeth McGarvey

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  1. Cheryl Gore-Felton
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  3. Maggie Chartier
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  4. William Gardner
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  5. Jessica Agnew-Blais
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  7. Elizabeth Weiss
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  8. Cheryl Koopman
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Correspondence to Cheryl Gore-Felton.

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Gore-Felton, C., Ginzburg, K., Chartier, M. et al. Attachment style and coping in relation to posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms among adults living with HIV/AIDS. J Behav Med 36, 51–60 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-012-9400-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-012-9400-x

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