Addiction and Attachment in Romantic Relationships: A Study on Young People

Background: This study aims to examine the relationship between addiction in romantic relationships and attachment styles of young people. Methods: A total of 456 university students aged 18-24 years participated in this descriptive, cross-sectional and correlational study. Demographic information form, addiction in romantic relationships scale (ARRS) and three-dimensional attachment style scale (TDASS) were used as data collection tools. The independent groups t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Tukey post hoc test and the Pearson correlation coefficient were used to analyse the obtained data. The statistical significance level was set as 0.05. Results: Of 456 young people participating in the study, 96.1% (n=438) were female and 3.9% (n=8) were male. Most participants (41.4%) were 20-21 years old. Although there were more undergraduate students (71.7%), most participants were in their first year (43.4%). More than half of the participants (56.8%) were in a romantic relationship. As a result of the study, the Mean±SD dependency in romantic relationships of participants was determined as 2.03±0.654. The self-commitment Mean±SD in romantic relationships was found to be low (1.79±0.626), and the mean of obsession was high (2.29±0.872). In addition, the findings show that most participants have a secure attachment style. In terms of gender, women had higher levels of anxious-ambivalent attachment. Participants in romantic relationships had higher levels of dependency, self-commitment, deprivation, and obsessive-compulsive attachment. Conclusion: Participants in romantic relationships have a secure attachment style, while participants without romantic relationships have an anxious-ambivalent attachment style.