1. Objectifs

Intentions :
«This study first aims to explore if emotion dysregulation mediates the associations between both dimensions of attachment insecurity and psychological, physical, and sexual TDV-P [teen dating violence perpetration]. Second, this study aims to examine if this mechanism operates similarly for adolescent boys and girls.» (p. 7)

Questions/Hypothèses :
«We hypothesized that attachment anxiety and avoidance will be associated with more emotion dysregulation, which, in turn, will result in higher probabilities of TDV-P. […] We hypothesized that the associations between attachment insecurities, emotion dysregulation, and TDV-P will be similar for both genders, but emotion dysregulation will play a more important role for girls.» (p. 7)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
«A subsample was derived from the Youths’ Romantic Relationships Survey, a longitudinal study conducted on a representative one-stage stratified cluster sample of 8,194 youths recruited in 34 high schools in Quebec, Canada. Schools were randomly selected from an eligible pool from the Quebec Ministry of Education. […] The final subsample consists in 3,214 participants and includes 1,930 girls (60%) and 1,284 boys, aged from 14 and 18 years […].» (p. 7)

Instruments :
Questionnaire

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

«Our hypotheses were partly confirmed. As expected, adolescents who reported more attachment anxiety and avoidance were more likely to present emotion dysregulation. Effect sizes were, however, larger for attachment anxiety than for attachment avoidance. A possible explanation for this difference in effect sizes could be that individuals high in attachment anxiety generally use activation strategies such as paying more attention to their negative emotions and exacerbating their emotional responses. These activation strategies may, in return, translate in more emotion dysregulation. […] In line with results from past studies, attachment anxiety was related to higher probabilities of TDV-P. Interestingly, this association was found for both genders and for all forms of TDV-P considered. This finding further supports the hypothesis set forth by attachment theory, which stipulates that anxious individuals are more likely to engage in acts of violence. […] The association between attachment anxiety and psychological TDV-P was, as hypothesized, partly explained by emotion dysregulation. In other words, adolescent girls and boys who reported more attachment anxiety presented higher levels of emotion dysregulation, which was related to higher probabilities of psychological TDV-P. This finding further supports the notion that general emotion dysregulation is an important correlate of psychological TDV-P […].» (p. 13)