Attachment and the oedipus complex: Attachment orientations moderate the effects of priming oedipal representations on the construal of romantic relationships

In this article, we attempt to extend into the realm of romantic relationships recent findings (Biton-Bereby, Mikulincer, & Shaver, 2019) concerning the effects of dispositional attachment anxiety and experimental reactivation of Oedipal issues on adult men's sexual attraction to women. In 3 studies, we measured male participants' attachment orientations, subliminally primed Oedipal or neutral mental representations, and examined the effects of the primes on mating preferences, romantic jealousy, and the appeal of physical sex within a romantic relationship. Findings indicated that men who scored higher on attachment anxiety reacted to the Oedipal prime (as compared with control primes) with heightened preference for mother-resembling women as potential mates, more intense romantic jealousy, and increased appeal of physical sex. Less attachment-anxious participants showed the opposite reactions to the Oedipal prime: reduced romantic jealousy, distancing from women who resembled mother, and weaker attraction to physical aspects of sex. The discussion focuses on integrating attachment and psychoanalytic theories.