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Structural Change in Adult Attachment Insecurity Through Transactional Analysis (TA) Developmental Collage Therapy: A
1Clinical Psychology, Tokyo Clinical Psychology Counseling Academy, Tokyo, JPN.
Cureus
|March 4, 2026
Summary
Transactional Analysis (TA) ego state functioning, specifically the Adult ego state, correlates with attachment anxiety. A TA-based therapy program altered these correlations, suggesting cognitive restructuring and improved attachment security.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Attachment Theory
- Transactional Analysis
Background:
- Internal Working Models (IWMs) shape relational expectations.
- Attachment scales like ECR measure emotional/behavioral aspects but not cognitive processing.
- Transactional Analysis (TA) posits the Adult ego state facilitates objective information processing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between the Adult ego state and attachment dimensions.
- To explore if TA-based therapy influences these relationships.
- To determine if cognitive function measures reveal insights beyond attachment scales alone.
Main Methods:
- 31 healthy adults completed the ECR-GO and TEG3 before and after TA collage therapy.
- Spearman correlations assessed relationships between ego state scores and attachment dimensions.
Main Results:
- Baseline: Significant negative correlation between Adult ego state and Anxiety (negative self-image).
- Post-intervention: This correlation vanished; a positive correlation emerged between Adapted Child and Anxiety.
- Significant decreases in both Anxiety and Avoidance were observed post-therapy.
Conclusions:
- Observed changes suggest structural reorganization, aligning with TA's concept of decontamination.
- Integrating cognitive function measures with attachment scales offers a more comprehensive understanding of relational dynamics.
- Further research with larger samples is recommended to confirm findings.
Keywords:
adult attachmentcollage therapydecontaminationego statesinternal working model (iwm)mental operating system (mental os)mentalizationstructural reorganizationtransactional analysis (ta)More Related Videos
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