Attachment Security, Regulatory Focus, and Well-Being in Young Adults

Attachment theory emphasizes that early relationship experiences shape emotional regulation and coping across the lifespan. This study examined how adult attachment security predicts regulatory focus (promotion vs prevention) and well-being outcomes (self-efficacy and resilience) among 120 university students (M = 20.24), and whether mental health mediates these associations. Consistent with the hypotheses, secure attachment was strongly linked to a promotion-focused orientation and higher self-efficacy and resilience but was unrelated to prevention focus. Securely attached individuals also reported better mental health; however, structural equation modeling showed that mental health did not mediate the link between attachment security and self-efficacy. These findings suggest secure attachment fosters confidence and adaptive motivation through enduring self-beliefs.