---
title: "Attachment in adults"
chunk: 3/3
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attachment_in_adults"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T15:31:27.865849+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

=== Duration ===
Some studies suggest that adults with a secure attachment style have longer-lasting relationships. This may be partly due to commitment. Adults with a secure attachment style tend to express more commitment to their relationships. Adults with a secure attachment style also tend to be more satisfied with their relationships, which may encourage them to stay in their relationships longer. However, having a secure attachment style is by no means a guarantee of long-lasting relationships. Relationship participants with anxious and avoidant attachment styles have been linked to a decreased level of commitment.
Nor are secure attachment styles the only attachment styles associated with stable relationships. Adults with the anxious–preoccupied attachment style often find themselves in long-lasting, but unhappy, relationships. Anxious–preoccupied attachment styles often involve anxiety about being abandoned and doubts about one's worth in a relationship. These kinds of feelings and thoughts may lead people to stay in unhappy relationships.

== See also ==

Committed relationship
Dynamic-maturational model of attachment and adaptation
Counterdependency
Human bonding
Interdependence theory – Theory of social exchange
Investment model of commitment – Predictive psychology theory about why people remain in relationships
Emotionally focused therapy
Fear of commitment
Jean Piaget
Traumatic bonding
Monogamy
Pair bonding
Attachment parenting
Term of endearment

== References ==

== Bibliography ==

== External links ==
Levine, A, & Heller, R. "What Attachment Theory Can Teach about Love and Relationships – The surprising secrets to finding the right partner for a healthy relationship" Scientific American, December 29, 2010
"A Brief Overview of Adult Attachment Theory and Research | R. Chris Fraley". labs.psychology.illinois.edu. Retrieved 2026-04-18.