The role of attachment insecurity on depression, stress, and overall health in nursing students

This study investigates attachment insecurity and its impact on mental and physical health in nursing students. Participants (n = 184) completed 5 scales measuring their attachment security, perceived stress (PSS), well-being (WHO-5), overall health perception (SRH), and depression (CES-D). Significant relationships were found between attachment insecurity and stress, well-being, overall health, and depression. A positive correlation was found between attachment insecurity and PSS, SRH, and CES-D scores. A negative correlation was found between attachment insecurity and WHO-5 scores. These findings suggest that as attachment insecurity increase, participants are more likely to experience stress, poor well-being, negative overall health, and depressive symptoms. Further analyses showed attachment avoidance and stress were significant predictors of depression. Additionally, attachment avoidance and stress were significant predictors of poor well-being. These results will add new insights to literature about the role adult attachment insecurity has on mental and physical health in nursing students.