The Role of Attachment Insecurity in the Intergenerational Transmission of Violence

TL;DR

This study explores how childhood trauma affects adult intimate partner violence through insecure attachment in romantic relationships.

Contribution

The study identifies attachment anxiety as a mediator linking childhood adversity to later violence perpetration, with gender-specific differences.

Findings

Attachment anxiety partially mediates the link between ACEs and IPV perpetration in women.

In men, attachment anxiety mediates the relationship despite no overall effect of ACEs on IPV.

Attachment avoidance does not mediate the ACEs-IPV relationship in either gender.

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a pervasive problem associated with a plethora of negative outcomes, including depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and chronic illness. Prior research has identified adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) as an important antecedent to IPV perpetration, and various mechanisms have since been examined to explain this association, including attachment. The purpose of this research is to investigate the mediating role of insecure adult romantic attachment in the relationship between ACEs and IPV perpetration, while also examining group differences among men and women.

The current study included a cross-sectional sample of 395 young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 (Mage = 19.1; 64% cisgender female; 54% White). We fit structural equation models to investigate the relationship between ACEs and IPV perpetration and the mediating role of attachment insecurity.

In women, part of the relationship between ACEs and IPV perpetration is mediated by attachment anxiety. In men, attachment anxiety plays a mediating role despite no total effect of ACEs on IPV perpetration. Attachment avoidance did not mediate the association between ACEs and IPV in men or women.

Attachment anxiety may play a role in the intergenerational transmission of violence. These findings can be used by clinicians and practitioners to prevent the development of an anxious attachment orientation or target anxious attachment in adults.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40653-025-00766-2.

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