Are attachment styles genetic?

Attachment styles are part of a theory known as attachment theory, which focuses on the relationships between people, including parent-child relationships and later romantic partners. Attachment is the bond we experience with someone else, and attachment theory asserts that the earliest connections we make with our caregivers as children impact relationships throughout life.

According to attachment theory, our earliest relationships with caregivers influence how we view later relationships and how we view and form those later relationships. While growing up, our caregivers either respond to our needs consistently or not. Based on their care, we may learn things about our environments: that we can count on our needs being met or can’t.

It’s thought that caregivers who are responsive to our needs as infants and children allow us to establish a sense of security that follows us throughout life, positively influencing later relationships. While some research demonstrates that our early relationships have this influence, others also show how our later experiences can change our attachment style and further inform how we experience and view relationship attachments.

Attachment theory is generally focused on the relationships and behavior experiences we experience to explain attachment style rather than genetics. Some research has found a correlation between certain genes and certain styles of attachment, however. Genes aren’t a guarantee of experiencing a certain attachment style, though. Environmental factors, family socialization, and caregiver responsiveness are still in play when our attachment styles form.

Researchers believe that the ability to form attachments is instinctual and hereditary for most people. Without the urge to bond with our caregivers or their ability and urge to bond with us as infants, we might not survive as we are born needing consistent care to be healthy and for basic needs like eating. Scientists are constantly researching how genes may influence the development of various issues and how they may influence the ways we develop, and each year more information is revealed.

If you’re curious about your attachment style, working with a therapist with education in attachment theory and styles may be very helpful. Whatever attachment style you have, plenty of research suggests that this can be changed to support secure and healthy relationships later in life.