The association between childhood trauma and attachment functioning in patients with personality disorders

Attachment (mal)functioning and a history of childhood trauma (CT) are both considered psychological determinants of personality disorders (PDs). Their interaction, however, remains largely uninvestigated. In this study, the authors assessed adult and childhood attachment style in a sample of patients with diverse PDs (N = 75) and determined the relation with both occurrence and severity of CT. The authors found that the sample was characterized by severe attachment malfunctioning and high levels of CT. Using cross-tabulations and analysis of variance, the authors showed that patients with a fearful or dismissive attachment style experienced more severe CT than patients with a preoccupied attachment style. Patients reporting an affectionless control bonding style to either parent suffered frequent and severe CT. Although temporal causality cannot be determined, these findings stress the necessity to screen for CT in PDs and suggest that attachment-centered psychotherapy for these patients may benefit from preceding or concurrent trauma treatment.



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Reference: 
Danielle Voestermans, MSc, Merijn Eikelenboom, MSc, Jitske Rullmann, MSc, Maryke Wolters-Geerdink, MSc, Nel Draijer, PhD, Jan H. Smit, PhD, Kathleen Thomaes, MD, PhD, and Hein J. F. van Marle, MD, PhD | 2020
In: Journal of Personality Disorders, ISSN: ISSN: 0885-579X | 34 | 474
https://guilfordjournals.com/doi/abs/10.1521/pedi_2020_34_474
View Ahead of Print DOI: 10.1521/pedi_2020_34_474
Keywords: 
Attachment Behavior, Early Childhood Trauma, Parents, Personality Disorders, Psychiatric Disorders, Psychotrauma, Treatment
Affiliation author(s):