On the road to social well-being

Abstract

The paths to social well-being begin early in development, through parent-child interactions that shape broad sets of social cognitions in the attachment system. These social schemas affect our abilities to form and sustain the positive social ties central to psychological well-being. Although these capacities are shaped in childhood, they are not immutable. The authors describe the links between attachment and social intelligence and offer an approach to improve the positive cognitions underlying social well-being.