According to attachment theory, variations in the quality of parent-child interactions have a long lasting effect on adult relationships. While some are secure in their relationships, others develop an insecure (anxious or avoidant) attachment style towards others. Despite the prominence of attachment theory in psychological and social sciences, no research has examined the role of attachment styles in the formation of intra-organizational networks. This research addresses this gap and contributes to research on the micro-foundation of social networks by investigating how attachment styles relate to the formation of friendship networks in the workplace. Furthermore, we explore the indirect association between attachment styles and job performance via centrality in friendship networks. We explore these research questions using a multi-method, multi-study approach that combines longitudinal analysis of friendship networks collected from MBA students (Study 1) and complete network data from a company based in China (Study 2). We found that individuals higher in attachment avoidance are less likely to have friends at work and that friendship degree centrality mediates the negative relationship between avoidance and job performance. Interestingly, we found counterintuitive results regarding anxious attachment which suggest that anxiously attached individuals attempt to make friends while simultaneously dissolving those same relationships.
