The Science of Connection
What secure connection is built from, and how relationships repair after a rupture. A route through attachment, trust, and the small bids that keep people close.
10 steps · roughly 30 minutes to read · Reviewed by Shariq Refai, MD, MBA
Attachment
Attachment is the emotional bond that shapes how we seek and offer safety in relationships.
Secure Attachment
Secure attachment is the comfortable balance of closeness and independence in relationships.
Trust
Trust is a willingness to rely on someone who could let you down.
Vulnerability
Vulnerability is the risk of being seen that makes closeness possible.
Bids for Connection
A bid for connection is a small reach that asks to be met.
Emotional Attunement
Emotional attunement is reading another person's feeling and meeting it well.
Empathic Accuracy
Empathy is caring, empathic accuracy is caring and being correct.
Rupture and Repair
Bonds grow strong through repeated rupture followed by real repair.
Repair Attempts
A repair attempt is a small gesture that interrupts conflict and invites reconnection.
Belonging
Belonging is the felt sense of being accepted and mattering to others.