Does Your Childhood Attachment Make You Bully Your Lover? The Role of Rejection Sensitivity and Romantic Relationship Satisfaction

Abstract

Evidence has shown that insecure childhood attachment and aggression in romantic relationships in emerging adulthood are related. This study examined the psychological processes underlying this association. Based on the attachment theory and the rejection sensitivity model, this study investigated rejection sensitivity as a mediator and romantic relationship satisfaction as a moderator in the association between insecure childhood attachment to parents and relational aggression toward partners. A total of 336 college students, currently in heterosexual romantic relationships, completed self-report questionnaires. The results of the moderated mediation analysis showed that the mediating effect of rejection sensitivity on the association between insecure childhood attachment and romantic relational aggression weakened as college students were more satisfied in their romantic relationships. This finding suggests that romantic relationship satisfaction offers emerging adults protection against difficulties associated with rejection sensitivity in the link between insecure childhood attachment and romantic relational aggression.