Publications [#273259] of Aaron C. Kay

Journal Articles

1. Baldwin, MW; Kay, AC, Adult attachment and the inhibition of rejection, Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, vol. 22 no. 3 (June, 2003), pp. 275-293, Guilford Publications
   (last updated on 2024/04/22)

   Abstract:
   Recent research has identified the inhibition of negative interpersonal information as a critical social cognitive mechanism associated with adult attachment orientations. Sixty undergraduate participants were conditioned to associate one computer tone with interpersonal rejection, and another with acceptance. The tones were played again while the participants performed a lexical decision task that assessed the activation of rejection information. To the extent that individuals were low on attachment anxiety, the conditioned tones led to slower reaction times to rejection target words, indicating the inhibition of rejection expectations. The implications of such inhibitory processing are discussed.