Adult attachment style and cognitive reactions to positive affect: A test of mental categorization and creative problem solving

Three studies examined the moderating effect of attachment style on cogniti ve reactions to positive affect inductions. In Study 1 (N = 110), participa nts completed attachment style scales, were asked to retrieve a happy or a neutral memory and, then, performed a categorization task. Study 2 (N = 120 ) used the same affect induction, while examining creative problem solving in the Remote Associates Test. Study 3 (N = 120) replicated Study 2, while using another affect induction (watching a comedy film) and controlling for trait anxiety scores. Overall, securely attached persons reacted to positi ve affect with broader categorization and better performance in creative pr oblem-solving tasks. Anxious-ambivalent persons showed air opposite pattern of cognitive reactions to positive affect, and avoidant persons showed no difference in their cognitive reactions to positive and neutral affect indu ctions. The discussion emphasizes rite role that attachment-related strateg ies of affect regulation may play in episodes of positive affect.