Debrot Anik, Stellar Jennifer E, MacDonald Geoff, Keltner Dacher, Impett Emily A
University of Lausanne, Switzerland.
University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Pers Soc Psychol Bull. 2021 Oct;47(10):1495-1509. doi: 10.1177/0146167220977709. Epub 2020 Dec 7.
Affectionate touch is crucial for well-being. However, attachment avoidance is associated with negative attitudes toward touch. We tested two preregistered hypotheses about how attachment avoidance influences the association between touch in romantic couples and psychological well-being. We examined whether greater attachment avoidance is associated with a reduced link between touch and well-being, and/or whether reduced touch mediates the relationship between attachment avoidance and lower well-being. Across three studies, including two dyadic ones, we measured retrospective self-reports (Studies 1 and 2), laboratory observations (Study 2), and daily experiences (Study 3) of touch. Touch and well-being were positively associated, and attachment avoidance was associated with lower well-being and less frequent touch. Touch was associated with greater well-being regardless of level of attachment avoidance, and less frequent touch mediated the negative association between attachment avoidance and well-being in most analyses. This underscores the importance of touch, even for those valuing distance and autonomy.
深情触摸对幸福感至关重要。然而，回避依恋与对触摸的消极态度有关。我们检验了两个预先注册的假设，内容是关于回避依恋如何影响浪漫情侣间的触摸与心理健康之间的关联。我们研究了更高程度的回避依恋是否与触摸和幸福感之间的联系减弱有关，和/或触摸减少是否介导了回避依恋与较低幸福感之间的关系。在三项研究中，包括两项二元研究，我们测量了触摸的回顾性自我报告（研究1和2）、实验室观察（研究2）以及日常体验（研究3）。触摸与幸福感呈正相关，回避依恋与较低的幸福感和较少的触摸频率有关。无论回避依恋程度如何，触摸都与更高的幸福感相关，并且在大多数分析中，较少的触摸频率介导了回避依恋与幸福感之间的负相关。这凸显了触摸的重要性，即使对于那些重视距离和自主性的人也是如此。
