New publication on attachment styles and acceptance of feedback

Judith Volmer and Jetmir Zyberaj from the Professorship of Work and Organisational Psychology have published a new paper in collaboration with Manuel London (Stony Brook University, New York) and Avraham Kluger (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel) in which they develop a new, conceptual model for the acceptance of feedback.

They posit that attachment behaviours (secure, anxious, avoidant) even of managers and employees have an impact on the feedback. According to this model, managers with a secure attachment style tend to give constructive feedback, whereas managers with an anxious attachment style avoid giving negative feedback out of fear of an uncomfortable reaction. Managers who avoid attachment tend however to give little feedback or express negative feedback unconstructively. The readiness to accept feedback on the part of the employees is also affected by attachment style, among whom the employees with a secure attachment style benefit the most from constructive feedback.

The research group additionally investigated the extent to which the (in)congruence of attachment styles among management and employees affects their interactions. From these consideration they deduce the implications on HR interventions.

Here is a link to the article.