Romantic attachment in chilean adultsdevelopment of a short-form version of the experiences in close relationships

  1. Spencer Contreras, Rosario 1
  2. Alonso Arbiol, Itziar 2
  3. Fresno Rodríguez, Andrés 1
  1. 1 Universidad de Talca
    info

    Universidad de Talca

    Talca, Chile

    ROR https://ror.org/01s4gpq44

  2. 2 Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea
    info

    Universidad del País Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea

    Lejona, España

    ROR https://ror.org/000xsnr85

Journal:
The Spanish Journal of Psychology

ISSN: 1138-7416

Year of publication: 2013

Issue: 16

Pages: 1-9

Type: Article

DOI: 10.1017/SJP.2013.64 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: The Spanish Journal of Psychology

Abstract

Though the study of romantic attachment has expanded into all areas of psychology, it remains the case that there is no valid, reliable test available to measure it in Latin America. The present research objective was to adapt a Chilean version of the Experiences in Close Relationships (ECR; Brennan, Clark, & Shaver 1998) questionnaire, developing a short-form version, and to determine its factor structure in two samples of Chilean adults of different ages. A pool of 25 items was chosen to capture the two dimensions (Anxiety and Avoidance), which were obtained through principal components analysis in a sample of 477 adults. Subsequently, the short-form ECR�s two-dimensional structure was confirmed using confirmatory factor analysis in a new sample (N = 296). All sub-dimensions� internal consistencies were found to be satisfactory. Evidence for the test�s concurrent validity with the variables age, gender, and socioeconomic status was also obtained. The dimensions of romantic attachment showed no differences according to age or gender. However, participants of high socioeconomic status exhibited lower levels of anxious attachment than those with low socioeconomic status. It was concluded that the Chilean short-form version of the ECR has good psychometric properties and is a suitable assessment of adult attachment.

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