Attachment style and its correlation to rapidity of progression of AIDS in HIV-positive individuals

Numerous studies show that when certain individuals with cancer or heart disease have a good social support system, they do not get as ill as quickly as those individuals without such a social support system (Spiegel, 1992; House & Landis, 1988). Secure attachment style, defined by healthy relationships in childhood with caretakers, and later in life by positive peer and romantic relationships, has been shown to reduce stress, improve immune system functioning, and retard progress in metastatic breast cancer (Spiegel, 1992) and heart disease (Bruhn, 1996). The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a correlation between attachment style and progression of disease in HIV-positive individuals.;The results of this study show that type of attachment style and level of social support had no correlation with rapidity of progression of AIDS. In addition, level of depression also had no correlation with rapidity of progression. However, it is important to take into consideration that certain biological and psychological factors in childhood and early adolescence may contribute to the state of the adult individual's immune system.;In most instances, HIV overwhelms the immune system due to its virulence, method of dissemination, and constant state of mutation. There are two types of immunity to HIV, cellular immunity and antibody immunity, and those HIV-positive individuals who are slow or non-progressors may have either or both types of immunity in different degrees. A small number of individuals show no antibodies after repeated exposure and are categorized as E.U.'s (exposed uninfecteds). They have been found to have cellular immunity to HIV (Giorgi, 1999). The majority of HIV-exposed individuals develop antibodies to HIV. Some of these individuals are slow or non-progressors, which may be due to an inherently stronger than normal immune system or infection by a weaker strain of the virus. Some individuals are rapid progressors, and this may be due to an inherently weaker than normal immune system or infection by a more virulent strain of the virus. In conclusion, although psychological and emotional factors did not show a correlation to the rapidity of progression of HIV in this study, it may well be that certain psychological factors in childhood and adolescence contribute to the degree of resistance and hardiness in the immune system of the individual, and in later life, contribute to the response of the individual's system to HIV and the ensuing course of the disease.