Attachment at the end of life : A systematic review
Sànchez-Julvé, Cruz (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
Viel-Sirito, Silvia (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
Limonero García, Joaquim T (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)

Publicació:	Cambridge University Press, 2025
Descripció:	20 pàg.
Resum:	Background The diagnosis of an advanced life-threatening illness brings with it existential challenges that activate the attachment system and different attachment styles influence coping with advanced illness. Objectives The objective of this work were (a) to analyze the influence of attachment styles of patients with advanced disease and their relatives on emotional distress and other psychological and existential aspects, and (b) to identify the most used assessment instruments to measure it, highlighting those with better psychometric properties in palliative care contexts. Methods Articles on attachment published from October 2005 to February 2025 using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guide (PRISMA) were identified by searching PubMed, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, Dialnet, and the Web of Science databases. Results Of 1847 studies identified, 24 were included (21 quantitative and 53 qualitative). Quality assessment revealed low risk of bias and high methodological quality. The main results indicated that a secure attachment style was associated with better coping, adaptation and adjustment strategies to the experience of illness, causing a buffering effect on suffering at the end of life. In contrast, patients with insecure attachment styles presented higher levels of emotional distress, demoralization, existential loneliness, death anxiety and showed a poorer psychological adaptation to cancer. Almost two-thirds of the studies (65. 1%) used some version of Experiences in Close Relationships (ECR) scale.
Nota:	Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UAB
Drets:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra, i la creació d'obres derivades, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials i que es distribueixin sota la mateixa llicència que regula l'obra original. Cal que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Llengua:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Matèria:	Systematic review ; Attachment ; Attachment measuring ; Advanced cancer ; Palliative care ; End of life ; Patients ; Family caregivers
Publicat a:	Palliative and Supportive Care, Vol. 23, art. e181 (2025) , ISSN 1478-9523

DOI: 10.1017/S1478951525100783

20 p, 657.4 KB

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