Date

4-7-2026

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)

Chair

Catherine Packer-Williams

Keywords

Thai adult Christians, developing a secure attachment to God, attachment theory, attachment to primary caregivers, Thai culture, Thailand, correspondence pathway, compensation pathway

Disciplines

Counseling

Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe Thai adult Christians’ experiences of developing a secure attachment to God. Many Thai children experience insecure attachments with their primary caregivers and attachment trauma. This study was guided by attachment theory to examine how attachment to primary caregivers, life crises, and relational and spiritual factors influenced the development of a secure attachment to God. This research used a transcendental phenomenological approach with a snowball sample of eight Thai adult Christians who demonstrate a secure attachment to God. Data collected through semi-structured interviews were analyzed through coding. Data analysis revealed six themes that responded to the four research questions, which related to attachment to primary caregivers and its influence on the perception of God, crisis and the development of an attachment to God, the gradual and lifelong journey in developing a secure attachment to God, benefits of developing a secure attachment to God, barriers to developing a secure attachment to God, and the factors contributing to developing a secure attachment to God. The findings demonstrated how Thai adult Christians developed a secure attachment to God through both the correspondence and compensation pathways, with influences from the Thai culture, spiritual practices, and relational support. This study extends knowledge of the development of a secure attachment to God within the Thai cultural context and offers implications for clinical counseling, pastoral care, and evangelism in Thailand.

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