To be acknowledged, mirrored and validated are psychological needs that we all have. This is a perfectly normal and natural part of being human and something that is vital for mental and emotional stability. And like most things in life, there can be extremes – and when this healthy requirement is taken to the extreme, it can lead to dysfunctional behaviour.

This could be a person who is constantly seeking attention from anyone who will give it, or it could be someone who seeks attention during certain times in his or her life.

My Opinion

So, here, I will give my current views on what I believe are some of the causes of attention-seeking behaviour. This is not to be taken as the complete or only truth. It is simply what I have come to conclude at this time in my life.

Isolated Occurrences

There will be times in one’s life when it will be fairly normal to seek attention in a way that is out of character. Here, individuals will seek more attention than they normally would, and this will be especially visible to the people closest to them.

Examples of this are more or less anything that causes a strong emotional reaction in someone: when a job comes to an end, when a relationship finishes, when a loved one passes on, at a time of ill health, at a time of transition, and when letting go happens, among numerous others.