How to use WhatsApp to suit your Attachment Style

First coined by Bowlby and Ainsworth in the 1950’s, attachment theory suggests that there are four styles of attachment – avoidant, anxious, secure and disorganized – that influence how we communicate and behave in relationships. 

Attachment theory continues to be a hot topic across social media in 2023, but have you ever considered how your attachment style might impact the way you message? WhatsApp has partnered with professional therapist and internet sensation Jeff Guenther, aka Therapy Jeff (who has 868k IG followers and 2.7m TikTok followers) to offer his top tips on using WhatsApp features to best complement your attachment style.

What’s on offer: 

• Therapy Jeff’s top tips according to your attachment style [below]
• Video content live on Jeff’s Instagram and TikTok
• Assets available here
• Quote from Jeff [below]

Therapy Jeff’s tips for matching your messaging to your attachment style:

• If you’re a “Secure” attachment style…you’re likely to trust others and you probably tend to exhibit effective communication skills. High five! That being said, the ability to edit your messages could come in handy if you like to double check your messages won’t be misconstrued after sending.

• If you’re an “Avoidant” attachment style…  you may sometimes want to have greater control over your social interactions. For those moments, you can leave groups silently, allowing you to remove yourself from situations with no explanation needed. See ya!

• If you’re an “Anxious” attachment style…you may worry about not receiving immediate responses when messaging friends. If this sounds like you, then don’t stress, just turn your read receipts off, to stop you from needing to check. Easy.

• If you’re a “Disorganised” attachment style…you likely exhibit behaviours from both anxious and avoidant styles. Intriguing. You may want to keep a low profile from large groups of people until you build their trust, which is why hiding your profile photo from certain contacts or people you don’t know could be a helpful tool.

Jeff Guenther, (aka Therapy Jeff) says, “While there is no one (attachment) style fits all, being aware of your attachment style can help you in many ways, including how you communicate with others. I’d encourage you to embrace your attachment habits and hope these tips help you discover WhatsApp features that will complement your style and foster better conversations”.