Accuracy and confidence in perceptions of targets’ attachment to former partners: Do judges vary as a function of individual differences in attachment orientation?

Abstract

This study builds on prior research by examining the degree to which individual differences in judges' attachment orientations predict their accuracy and confidence in rating targets' ongoing attachment to former partners. Targets were recently separated/divorced adults (N = 132) who described their separation experiences. Naive judges (N-study (1) = 93, N-study (2) = 296) read transcripts of targets' separation narratives and rated targets' strength of ongoing attachment to their former partners. Judges' high accuracy did not vary by judges' attachment orientations. However, greater judge avoidance was associated with lower confidence in ratings. Greater attachment anxiety was linked with weaker associations between accuracy and confidence. We discuss findings in terms of their potential implications for partner selection and future studies that can assess this link. (C) 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.