Investigating the relationship between reckless behaviours, gender, psychological mindedness, and attachment security

Reckless behaviours, such as reckless driving, sexual behaviours and drug use, are major lifestyle contributors to morbidity and mortality for young adults. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the relationship between reckless behaviours, gender, attachment security and psychological mindedness. Data was collected from university students (n = 101) aged between 18 to 30 years old (M = 21) and analysed using multivariate analysis of covariance. Gender was found to be a significant predictor of reckless behaviour (p = .004), with males reporting significantly higher levels. Participants reporting high levels of attachment security did not report significantly different reckless behaviours than participants with low levels of attachment security. However, participants reporting high levels of psychological mindedness, compared to those with low levels of psychological mindedness, tended to engage in significantly more reckless substance use (p < .024). To date, there has been relatively little or no research on the relationship between psychological mindedness and reckless behavior, and these results highlight the inconclusiveness of previous research regarding the relationship between PM and therapy outcome, warranting further research. The results raise questions regarding what behaviours constitute healthy psychological functioning and adjustment in young adulthood. Limitations of the study, including characteristics of the sample and generalisability of the findings, are identified. Implications of the results for developing psychological mindedness and future research are discussed.