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Preoccupied but not dismissing attachment states of mind are associated with nonsuicidal self-injury

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 April 2017

Jodi Martin ,
Jean-François Bureau ,
Marie-France Lafontaine ,
Paula Cloutier ,
Celia Hsiao ,
Dominique Pallanca  and
Paul Meinz
Jodi Martin*
Affiliation:
York University
Jean-François Bureau
Affiliation:
University of Ottawa
Marie-France Lafontaine
Affiliation:
University of Ottawa
Paula Cloutier
Affiliation:
Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario
Celia Hsiao
Affiliation:
University of the Witwatersrand
Dominique Pallanca
Affiliation:
Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine
Paul Meinz
Affiliation:
Western University
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Jodi Martin, Department of Psychology, York University. 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3; E-mail: [email protected].
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Abstract

In this investigation the factor structure of the Adult Attachment Interview was studied in a partially at-risk sample of 120 young adults. More specifically, 60 participants had engaged in nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI; 53 females, M age = 20.38 years), and 60 were non-self-injuring controls matched by age and sex. Theoretically anticipated differential associations between preoccupied (but not dismissing) states of mind and NSSI were then examined. Exploratory factor analyses identified evidence for two weakly correlated state of mind dimensions (i.e., dismissing and preoccupied) consistently identified in factor analyses of normative-risk samples. As hypothesized, results further showed that preoccupied (but not dismissing) states of mind were associated with NSSI behavior. Findings support existing arguments suggesting that the regulatory strategy adults adopt when discussing attachment-related experiences with primary caregivers, particularly passive, angry, or unresolved discourse patterns, is uniquely correlated with NSSI.

Type
Special Issue Articles
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 29 , Special Issue 2: Attachment in the Context of Atypical Caregiving: Harnessing Insights From a Developmental Psychopathology Perspective , May 2017 , pp. 379 - 388
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017 

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