These are fundamental ways that individuals view others, and are divided into positive versus negative views of the self and others. People with positive views of the self and positive views of others are described as having secure attachment styles, which means that they tend to be good at balancing their own needs with the needs of relationship partners. People with negative views of the self but positive views of others have a preoccupied attachment style, and tend to be overly clingy and anxious in relationships. People with positive views of the self and negative views of others have a dismissing attachment style, and tend to avoid deep interpersonal bonds. Finally, those with negative views of the self and others have fearful attachment styles, desiring to have relationships with others but not being trusting enough to engage in them. See Bartholomew & Horowitz (1991) for more information.
Published in Chapter:
The Empathy Paradox: Increasing Disconnection in the Age of Increasing Connection
Sara Konrath (University of Michigan, USA & University of Rochester Medical Center, USA)
Copyright: © 2013
|Pages: 25
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-2211-1.ch012
Abstract
The purpose of this chapter is to summarize changes in personality traits that have co-occurred with the rise of new social media, and to evaluate the plausibility of the hypothesis that new social media are a partial explanation for these dramatic changes. Studies have found a rise in social disconnection among recent generations of young Americans. Self-esteem and narcissism have been rising in college students from the late 1970s to 2010, with simultaneous declines in empathy. Scholars and lay people alike blame the rise of the internet, and in particular, self-oriented and self-promoting “social” networking sites. This new media landscape could lead to increasing social disconnection even as it superficially increases our social connections, and several studies suggest a direct link between social media use and social disconnection. However, since most research thus far is correlational, interpretations are limited, leaving open more optimistic possibilities for new social media.