Audrey Brassard

Adult Attachment and Male Aggression in Couple Relationships: The Demand-Withdraw Communication Pattern and Relationship Satisfaction as Mediators

This study examines men’s domestic aggression as a function of attachment insecurities, considering the mediating roles of the demand-withdraw communication pattern and relationship satisfaction. The sample included 55 Canadian men undergoing counseling for relationship difficulties including aggression. The men completed questionnaires assessing physical and psychological aggression, the two dimensions of attachment insecurity (anxiety over abandonment and avoidance of intimacy), the demand-withdraw communication pattern, relationship satisfaction, and social desirability (a control measure). As predicted, there was an association between attachment anxiety and aggression (both physical and psychological), which was mediated by the man demands/woman withdraws (MD/WW) pattern (as reported by the men). There was no evidence of mediation by the woman demands/man withdraws pattern, as reported by the men. Relationship satisfaction mediated the association between attachment anxiety and psychological (but not physical) aggression, but did not mediate the link between avoidance and aggression (physical or psychological). Limitations and clinical implications are discussed.

Attachment, sexual assertiveness and sexual outcomes in women with provoked vestibulodynia and their partners : a mediation model

Provoked vestibulodynia (PVD) is a prevalent women’s sexual pain disorder, which is associated with sexual function difficulties. Attachment theory has been used to understand adult sexual outcomes, providing a useful framework for examining sexual adaptation in couples confronted with PVD. Research to date indicates that anxious and avoidant attachment dimensions correlate with worse sexual outcomes in community and clinical samples. The present study examined the association between attachment, pain, sexual function, and sexual satisfaction in a sample of 101 couples in which the women presented with PVD. The actor–partner interdependence model was used in order to investigate both actor and partner effects. This study also examined the role of sexual assertiveness as a mediator of these associations via structural equation modeling. Women completed measures of pain intensity and both members of the couple completed measures of romantic attachment, sexual assertiveness, sexual function, and satisfaction. Results indicated that attachment dimensions did not predict pain intensity. Both anxious and avoidant attachment were associated with lower sexual satisfaction. Only attachment avoidance predicted lower sexual function in women. Partner effects indicated that higher sexual assertiveness in women predicted higher sexual satisfaction in men. Finally, women’s sexual assertiveness was found to be a significant mediator of the relationship between their attachment dimensions, sexual function, and satisfaction. Findings highlight the importance of examining how anxious and avoidant attachment may lead to difficulties in sexual assertiveness and to less satisfying sexual interactions in couples where women suffer from PVD.

A dyadic approach to the study of romantic attachment, dyadic empathy, and psychological partner aggression:

This study examined the intrapersonal, dyadic, and mediational relationships underlying romantic attachment (Experiences in Close Relationships), dyadic empathy (Interpersonal Reactivity Index for Couples), and psychological partner aggression (Revised Conflict Tactics Scales) in 193 community-based couples. In women, attachment insecurity predicted lower dyadic empathy and greater psychological aggression. In men, attachment insecurity predicted lower perspective taking, higher empathic concern, and greater psychological aggression. Partner effects were found for men, with their attachment predicting their female partner’s dyadic empathy and psychological aggression. In women, low perspective taking mediated the relationship between: (1) their anxiety over abandonment and their psychological aggression; and (2) their avoidance of intimacy and their psychological aggression. Findings are consistent with the attachment theory and clinical implications are discussed.

Attachment Insecurities and Women's Sexual Function and Satisfaction: The Mediating Roles of Sexual Self-Esteem, Sexual Anxiety, and Sexual Assertiveness

We examined the potential role of three mediators—sexual self-esteem, sexual anxiety, and sexual assertiveness—of the association between romantic attachment insecurities (anxiety and avoidance) and two aspects of womens sexual functioning: sexual function and sexual satisfaction. A sample of 556 women aged 18 to 30 agreed to complete an online series of validated questionnaires assessing attachment insecurities and several aspects of sexual functioning. Lower sexual self-esteem and higher sexual anxiety mediated the associations between attachment anxiety and lower sexual function and satisfaction. Lower sexual self-esteem and higher sexual anxiety also partially mediated the links between attachment-related avoidance and the two sexual functioning variables. Sexual assertiveness, however, did not mediate these associations. A significant interaction between attachment anxiety and avoidance was also found to predict sexual satisfaction, with women high in avoidance and low in anxiety being the least satisfied. Results are discussed in terms of theoretical and clinical implications.

Romantic Attachment Insecurity Predicts Sexual Dissatisfaction in Couples Seeking Marital Therapy

Researchers and practitioners have noted the importance of considering individual characteristics as well as couple dynamics when attempting to understand couples and sexual difficulties. Using a dyadic approach, this study examined the links between 2 forms of romantic attachment insecurity (anxiety and avoidance) and sexual dissatisfaction among members of couples seeking couple therapy. A large clinical sample of 242 French-speaking couples completed the Experiences in Close Relationships Scale and the Index of Sexual Satisfaction. Analyses based on the actor–partner interdependence model revealed that both attachment anxiety and avoidance predicted individuals’ own sexual dissatisfaction (actor effects). The authors also observed 2 partner effects: (a) anxiety in men predicted female partners’ sexual dissatisfaction and (b) avoidance in women predicted male partners’ sexual dissatisfaction. The results support attachment theory and have clinical implications for emotion-focused couple therapy and other approaches to couple therapy.

Sexuality Examined Through the Lens of Attachment Theory: Attachment, Caregiving, and Sexual Satisfaction

Attachment researchers have proposed that the attachment, caregiving, and sexual behavioral systems are interrelated in adult love relationships (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007). This study examined whether aspects of partners’ caregiving (proximity, sensitivity, control, compulsive caregiving) mediated the association between their attachment insecurities (anxiety and avoidance) and each others sexual satisfaction in two samples of committed couples (Study 1: 126 cohabiting or married couples from the general community; Study 2: 55 clinically distressed couples). Partners completed the Experiences in Close Relationships measure (Brennan, Clark, & Shaver, 1998), the Caregiving Questionnaire (Kunce & Shaver, 1994), and the Global Measure of Sexual Satisfaction (Lawrance & Byers, 1998). Path analyses based on the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) revealed that caregiving proximity mediated the association between low attachment avoidance and partners’ sexual satisfaction in distressed and nondistressed couples. Sensitivity mediated this association in nondistressed couples only. Control mediated the association between mens insecurities (attachment-related avoidance and anxiety) and their partners’ low sexual satisfaction in nondistressed couples. Attachment anxiety predicted compulsive caregiving, but this caregiving dimension was not a significant mediator. These results are discussed in light of attachment theory and their implications for treating distressed couples.

Childhood Sexual Abuse and Intimate Partner Violence in a Clinical Sample of Men: The Mediating Roles of Adult Attachment and Anger Management

This study examined the association between men’s experience of childhood sexual abuse and later perpetration of intimate partner violence, considering the roles of attachment insecurity and poor anger regulation. The sample was 302 Canadian men undergoing counseling for relationship difficulties or aggression. They completed questionnaires assessing childhood sexual abuse, the two dimensions of attachment insecurity (anxiety and avoidance), anger regulation processes, physical and psychological aggression, and social desirability bias. Path analyses showed that men who experienced childhood sexual abuse scored higher on attachment anxiety, which in turn was associated with aggressive behaviors directly and through four anger-related variables (trait anger, anger-in, anger-out, and low anger control). Attachment-related avoidance predicted psychological aggression, but not physical aggression, through men’s trait anger and anger-in.

Whose fault is it? Blame predicting psychological adjustment and couple satisfaction in couples seeking fertility treatment

Abstract Infertility bears psychological and relational consequences for couples who face this problem. Few studies have examined the role of self- and partner blaming to explain psychological and relationship adjustment in couple presenting with a fertility problem. This study used a dyadic approach to explore the links between blaming oneself and one’s partner and both partners’ symptoms of depression and anxiety, and couple satisfaction in 279 couples enrolled in fertility treatments. Partners were questioned about the extent to which they blamed themselves and their partner for the fertility problem. They also completed the Dyadic Adjustment Scale and the Index of Psychological Symptoms. Path analyses based on the Actor–Partner Interdependence Model showed that self-blame predicted anxiety and depression symptoms in both men and women. Men’s self-blame also predicted their own lower relationship satisfaction, whereas women’s self-blame predicted more depression and anxiety in their partner. Partner blame in women predicted their own and their partner lower relationship satisfaction. Women’s tendency to blame their partner also predicted their own depression symptoms. Clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Effects of a Developmental Adventure on the Self-Esteem of College Students:

This study examines the effects of outdoor developmental adventure programming (ODA) on college students’ self-esteem. Although some previous studies have shown that outdoor adventure programming has positive effects on self-esteem, others did not find any effect. A quasi-experimental study was conducted over 5 months, which included two pretests and two posttests to address some limitations of previous studies. A total of 84 participants completed the Questionnaire d’estime de soi hiérarchique, a questionnaire assessing self-esteem on four occasions. The experimental group (outdoor adventure; n = 32) was compared with the control groups (travel, n = 17; soccer, n = 35) using repeated measures of covariance analyses. Positive and significant increases were found for the athletic dimension of self-esteem and for global self-esteem for the experimental group (outdoor adventure) only. The increased benefits provided by the combination of adventure and sports in ODA, over sports-only or traveling-only interventions, underline the importance of developing ODA with college students.

Moving forward together, stronger, and closer: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of marital benefits in infertile couples:

Some couples find in infertility the bonding opportunities that reinforce their relationship. Using an interpretative phenomenological analysis, this study examined marital benefits in three couples seeking fertility treatment. Interviews revealed five types of benefits: being engaged in a shared hardship, feeling closer to one another, feeling reassured in the relationship, developing a satisfying communication and support behaviors, and having faith in the couple’s capacity to face adversity. A dyadic analysis also illustrated how marital benefits developed in each couple. Marital benefits nourished marital satisfaction, thus underscoring their importance to help couples cope through fertility treatment.