Relational Courage: A Virtue of the Secure Attachment Figure

Abstract

This dissertation explores the relationship between attachment theory and virtue theory with a specific focus on the attachment figure and the virtue of courage. It begins with an overview of attachment theory, including its strengths and weaknesses, and introduces the possibility that theology and philosophy can contribute to bolstering attachment theory. The weaknesses, or “gaps,” identified and addressed include the greater attention to the subjective experience of the attachment figure and a deeper human anthropology. A general review of virtue and a specific review of courage illuminate less expounded aspects of the virtue of courage, which are proposed to offer value to attachment theory. In particular, the integration of virtue with attachment theory promotes a richer anthropology of the person, which lends itself to a clearer understanding of human attachment. The main work of this dissertation builds this link between attachment and virtue, focusing most especially on the attachment figure’s practice of the virtue of courage. The premise of this dissertation is that, in order for an attachment figure to form a secure attachment with another person, the attachment figure must cultivate the virtue of relational courage. Relational courage is defined as the ability of the attachment figure to encourage the independence of the person attached while remaining vulnerable and available, despite any fear of the suffering that may entail. This dissertation suggests that developing the virtue of relational courage may benefit all attachment relationships by providing the philosophical and theological lens of virtue to the psychological phenomenon of attachment.