Self-reported reflective functioning mediates the association between attachment insecurity and well-being among psychotherapists.

6533b86cfe1ef96bd12c805f

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Self-reported reflective functioning mediates the association between attachment insecurity and well-being among psychotherapists.

Andrea Greco Cristina Zarbo Giorgio A. Tasca Agostino Brugnera Gianluca Lo Coco Angelo Compare Alessandro Talia Adalberto Auteri Francesco Greco Luca Pievani Kim De Jong

subject

therapist subjective variable 050103 clinical psychology attachment avoidance Psychotherapist therapist Attachment anxiety Negative association therapists attachment anxiety attachment avoidance mentalizing psychotherapists reflective functioning therapist factors therapist subjective variables therapists well-being therapist factors Developmental psychology 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Psychotherapists well-being Settore M-PSI/08 - Psicologia Clinica Humans 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences Path analysis (statistics)attachment anxiety reflective functioning 05 social sciences psychotherapist Professional-Patient Relations Mental health Object Attachment 030227 psychiatry Psychotherapy Clinical Psychology Insecure attachment Cross-Sectional Studies Mentalization therapist factor therapist subjective variables Well-being mentalizing Self Report attachment anxiety; attachment avoidance; mentalizing; psychotherapists; reflective functioning; therapist factors; therapist subjective variables; therapists; well-being Psychology

description

Objective: Subjective well-being is a crucial variable for mental health practitioners. This study examines the influence of therapists’ attachment dimensions and self-reported reflective functioning on their perceived well-being. Further, it examines if reflective functioning mediates the association between attachment insecurity and well-being. Method: A total of 416 experienced psychotherapists were enrolled in this cross-sectional study, and completed self-report measures of attachment insecurity, reflective functioning, and well-being. We tested the hypothesized mediation model with path analysis that examined indirect effects. Results: Both attachment anxiety and avoidance dimensions had a significant negative association with perceived well-being with small to medium effects. “Certainty” in reflective functioning had a small positive effect on therapist well-being. Reflective functioning mediated the association between insecure attachment dimensions and well-being, suggesting that therapist's lower ability to mentalize may partially account for the effects of higher attachment insecurity on lower well-being. Conclusion: The well-being of psychotherapists with greater insecure attachment may deserve special attention, and therapists’ mentalizing capacities may be targeted by researchers and trainers as a core ability to be cultivated in order to preserve therapists’ professional and personal resources.

year	journal	country	edition	language
2020-05-20	Psychotherapy research : journal of the Society for Psychotherapy Research

10.1080/10503307.2020.1762946 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32429777