Independence, autonomy and a feeling of self-efficacy are vital elements of adult life. Healthy adults typically have the ability to manage their own resources, act often without the substantial aid of others, be independent of the resources of their family and parents, and make and create goals. Understanding what social and psychological factors create this feeling of independence and self-esteem is important, and has surprisingly minimal literature. For example: Much of the attachment literature has focused on secure attachment, yet those who are sometimes classified as avoidant may have more autonomy, due to cultural bias in the model. This research attempts to examine without the blinders of prior theory what produces independence.
Introduction
In the West, there is a high premium put on independence, autonomy and self-esteem. Individuals should be able to handle their own business, make their own decisions, and stand up for their own opinion,.The values are less collective than in Eastern cultures. Yet much of psychology has actually had collective values. Attachment theory, for example, has posited that healthy children should not be too independent from their parents as indicated by the results of the strange situation test (Ein-Dor et al, 2010; New and Cochran, 2007, 46-50). Attachment theory in the West is highly culturally specific: Healthy attachments are made the world over, yet different parenting styles are used, with different amounts of autonomy, formality and emotional distance encouraged. Moreover, almost half of people are avoidant or ambivalent attachment types, which is evolutionarily “odd” (Ein-Dor et al, 2010). There may be advantages to a society comprised of different attachment types, with different levels of interpersonal trust and relation, just as there is an advantage to a society with introverts (Cain, 2013). But Western society has tended to devalue depressive states and pathos and value extroversion and emotional disclosure, even with masculine norms gravitating against emotional disclosure. This research aims to examine what aspects of psychology make people more likely to be independent, autonomous and self-efficacious, what gives them the