The Associations Between Attachment Insecurity and Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder or Problematic Pornography Use

The Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation Difficulties

Bibliographic Data

ID8358180
AuthorsMagdalena Wizła (0000-0001-9899-5197, Institute of Psychology, corresponding author), Karol Lewczuk (0000-0003-2437-2450, Institute of Psychology)
Year2024
Volume53
Issue9
Pages3419-3436
Publication date2024-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueArchives of Sexual Behavior (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0004-0002 • E-ISSN: 1573-2800
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s10508-024-02904-7
PMID38898361
OpenAlexW4399799550
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited127

Compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD) was previously considered an attachment disorder, while emotion dysregulation was thought to potentially be a key characteristic of it. However, this theoretical model was not tested in previous empirical research. In our cross-sectional study, we tested whether emotional regulation (ER) difficulties can be adopted as an explanatory mechanism for the relationships between attachment avoidance and anxiety, as well as CSBD and its most prevalent behavioral presentation—problematic pornography use (PPU). Participants ( n = 1002; M age = 50.49 years, SD = 13.32; men: 50.2%) completed an online survey regarding the investigated variables. In mediation analyses, attachment avoidance and anxiety were treated as simultaneous predictors, ER difficulties as a mediating variable, with CSBD/PPU severity as dependent variables. Emotion regulation difficulties and attachment anxiety had a direct positive effect on both CSBD and PPU. The direct effect of attachment avoidance on PPU was non-significant, and significant for CSBD depending on the measure used. Moreover, all the relationships between both insecure attachment dimensions and CSBD/PPU symptom severity were at least partially mediated by ER difficulties. Our results corroborate the theoretical claim that ER difficulties may be a useful framework for explaining the impact of attachment insecurity on CSBD/PPU. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed

Anxiety · Attachment theory · Developmental psychology · Insecure attachment · Mechanism (biology) · Mediation · Pornography · Psychiatry · Sexual behavior · Clinical Psychology · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Marriage and Sexual Relationships · Psychology · Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access