Assessing attachment to former spouses: Implementation of the Divorce Reaction Inventory

Abstract

This thesis reports the findings of a replication of a segment of previous research in which level of emotional attachment to former spouse was measured, and relationships of that measurement to particular variables were explored. The hypotheses are based on characteristics expected to be related to attachment in the context of marital separation and divorce. The data reveal that neither length of marriage nor length of time since physical separation bears a relationship to level of attachment. There is no difference in levels of attachment for males and females. Level of attachment is higher for those individuals who wanted the divorce less than for those who wanted the divorce more. Both expectedness of the divorce and preparedness for the consequences of divorce are related negatively to level of attachment.