Adult Attachment Styles and Aggressive Behavior within Dating Relationships
Abstract
Recent developments in the application of attachment theory to the study of adult relationships are used to explain the occurrence of aggression in dating relationships. We compared individuals who reported being engaged in reciprocally aggressive dating relationships with individuals who reported being in non-aggressive relationships on measures of attachment patterns and interpersonal problems. To examine the robustness of the attachment-aggression relationship, we also statistically controlled for the effects of interpersonal problems. Using a sample of 85 undergraduate students, we found that, after controlling for relationship satisfaction and length of relationship, those involved in reciprocally aggressive relationships scored higher on the preoccupied and fearful-avoidant attachment styles and reported experiencing more interpersonal problems than did individuals involved in non-aggressive dating relationships. When we controlled for interpersonal problems, however, only the relationship between preoccupied attachment and aggression was observed. Although sex differences were found for attachment style scores and interpersonal problems, no significant sex x type of relationship (non-aggressive vs reciprocally aggressive) effects were observed. The results are discussed in the context of recent findings on attachment, conflict and aggression and recommendations for future research are offered.
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Mutual violence seems to occur when there is at least one partner with preoccupied attachment, in the dismissing-anxious couple pattern, when both partners present anxious attachment, or when they show high rates on both attachment dimensions of anxiety and avoidance.
“According to studies that investigated the relationship between partners attachment and IPV, not making distinctions between different forms of violence, mutual violence seems to occur when there is at least on partner with preoccupied attachment (Bookwala and Zdaniuk, 1998; Bookwala, 2002), in the dismissing-anxious couple pattern (Bond and Bond, 2004), when both partners present anxious”
From Exploring Relationships: A Systematic Review on Intimate Partner Violence and Attachment (2018) · cites this paper as Bookwala and Zdaniuk, 1998
Studies investigating attachment matching in violent couples showed that couples where both partners have an anxious attachment are more prone to be violent.
“studies investigating the attachment matching in violent couples showed that couples where both partner have an anxious attachment are more prone to be violent (Bookwala and Zdaniuk, 1998; Bookwala, 2002).”
From Exploring Relationships: A Systematic Review on Intimate Partner Violence and Attachment (2018) · cites this paper as Bookwala and Zdaniuk, 1998
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Self-citationA dyadic analysis of partner violence and adult attachment
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- Authors
- Bookwala, J., & Zdaniuk, B.
- Affiliations
- University of Pennsylvania (US)
- University of Pittsburgh
- ORCID
- Bookwala, Jamila
- Venue
- Journal of Social and Personal Relationships
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 1998-04
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 175-190
- ISSN
- 0265-4075 (ISSN-L)
- 1460-3608
- OpenAlex
- W2134855541
- Cited by
- 116
- References
- 3
- Citations by year
- 2025: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 11
- FWCI
- 3.48
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Social and Personal Relationships (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Health › Intimate Partner and Family Violence
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Keywords
- adult attachment styles, aggression, dating relationships, preoccupied attachment, fearful attachment, interpersonal problems, relationship satisfaction, relationship duration, sex differences, attachment theory
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