Secure attachment in adulthood is associated with all of the following EXCEPT:

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Securely attached adults are comfortable with intimacy, trust others, and openly share thoughts and feelings, so they typically show high—not low—levels of self-disclosure.

1) Relevant knowledge points and concepts
- Attachment theory (Bowlby, Ainsworth) describes secure vs. insecure attachment patterns. In adulthood, secure attachment involves trusting close relationships, effective emotional regulation, and comfort with intimacy and autonomy.
- Self-disclosure is the sharing of personal information, emotions, and thoughts; it is a marker of relational trust and intimacy.
- Psychological and physical health benefits arise from supportive relationships and adaptive coping.

2) Step-by-step reasoning
Step 1: Define secure attachment: emotional availability, trust, and comfort with closeness.  
Step 2: Link behaviors: Secure adults seek support, communicate, and disclose feelings—this fosters intimacy.  
Step 3: Link outcomes: Consistent social support and effective emotion regulation lead to positive well-being and better physical and mental health (lower stress, better coping).  
Step 4: Evaluate the answer choices against these features.

3) Intermediate logical steps shown
- Choice A: "close, supportive, and intimate relationships" → matches secure attachment characteristics (yes).  
- Choice C: "positive well-being" → secure attachment predicts greater life satisfaction, lower depression/anxiety (yes).  
- Choice D: "better physical and mental health" → social support and stress buffering from secure relationships produce better health outcomes (yes).  
- Choice B: "decreased levels of self-disclosure" → contradicts core secure behaviors; low self-disclosure is characteristic of avoidant/insecure attachment, not secure.

4) Why the correct answer is correct
Decreased self-disclosure is the exception because securely attached adults tend to disclose more, not less. Avoidant/insecure adults avoid intimacy and disclose less; anxious adults may overshare but with distress. Thus decreased self-disclosure does not align with secure attachment.

5) Why the other options are not the exception
A, C, and D describe well-documented correlates of secure attachment: close supportive relationships, improved well-being, and better physical/mental health.

Conclusion: The EXCEPT option is "decreased levels of self-disclosure," which matches the provided correct answer.

Secure attachment in adulthood is associated with all of the following EXCEPT:Single choice

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