Maternal nurturance predicts decreases in attachment avoidance in emerging adulthood q William J. Chopik a,⇑ , Amy C. Moors a,b , Robin S. Edelstein a a Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, United States b Department of Women’s Studies, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, United States article info Article history: Available online 28 August 2014 Keywords: Maternal nurturance Attachment Adolescence Emerging adulthood abstract One of the central tenets of attachment theory is that experiences in early childhood influence people’s approach to social relationships throughout the lifespan. We examined the influence of caregiver nurturance on the development of attachment orientation from adolescence to emerging adulthood in a sample of 103 individuals (50% female). Attachment anxiety decreased from age 14 to 18 and then increased from age 18 to 23; avoidance decreased from age 14 to 23. Higher caregiver nurturance at age 3 was associated with larger declines in avoidance from age 14 to 23. Our findings illustrate how early caregiving experiences continue to shape and influence children’s personality development, nearly twenty years after these experiences occur. Ó 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction One of the central tenets of attachment theory is that experiences in early childhood influence people’s approach to social relationships throughout the lifespan (Bowlby, 1969/1982). Sensitive and nurturant caregiving is thought to promote children’s sense of security, which is carried forward into adolescent and adult relationships (Fraley & Shaver, 2000). Yet very few studies have examined prospective links between parenting styles and children’s personality beyond the first few years of life. Further, it is unclear how attachment orientations change during emerging adulthood and whether early caregiving environments predict the nature of these changes. In the current study, we examined the influence of caregiver nurturance on the development of attachment orientations during emerging adulthood. 1.1. The development of attachment orientation in emerging adulthood Attachment theory postulates that differences in the quality of early caregiving experiences lead to individual differences in parent–infant attachment (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978). According to this framework, secure infants tend to have nurturant caregivers who are responsive and attentive to their needs; insecure (anxious and avoidant) infants tend to have caregivers who are less nurturant and less responsive to their needs. Hazan and Shaver (1987) extended these classifications to adult attachment orientations that conceptually map onto differ- ences found among infants (secure, anxious, avoidant). Attachment anxiety reflects concern over the availability of close others; attachment avoidance reflects discomfort with closeness and intimacy. Individuals low in both anxiety and avoidance are generally considered secure. Indeed, secure attachment assessed in infancy is often related to better communication and conflict resolution skills in close relationships in adulthood (Roisman, Collins, Sroufe, & Egeland, 2005). Since Hazan and Shaver’s (1987) seminal article, adult attach- ment theory has become a dominant framework for understanding individual differences in cognition, emotion, and behavior in close relationships (Cassidy & Shaver, 2008). Relatively little is known, however, about lifespan developmental changes in attachment ori- entation, particularly during important life stages and transitions. Emerging adulthood, a period between adolescence and adulthood, may be particularly relevant for understanding changes in attachment because it is a period of great change, both physically and psychologically (Arnett, 2000). During this time period, people begin to explore their identities and become increasingly indepen- dent from their primary caregivers (Erikson, 1968). Emerging adulthood is also important from an attachment perspective because emerging adults begin to shift their attachment needs http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2014.08.004 0092-6566/Ó 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. q The data employed in this study derive from a 30-year longitudinal study begun with 128 3-year-old girls and boys, planned and conducted by Jack and Jeanne H. Block, involving a sequence of 9 independent assessments based on personality and cognitive Life, Observational, Test, and Self-report (LOTS) measures. The first author was supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. ⇑ Corresponding author. Address: Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, 530 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States. Fax: +1 (734) 647 9440. E-mail address: chopik@umich.edu (W.J. Chopik). Journal of Research in Personality 53 (2014) 47–53 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Journal of Research in Personality journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jrp