Childhood Physical Maltreatment and Borderline Personality Disorder Features in Adolescents: Mediating and Moderating Effects of Attachment Styles and Gender

ABSTRACT

Childhood physical maltreatment may contribute to the onset of borderline personality disorder (BPD) features in adolescence; however, the mechanisms explaining this association warrant investigation. This study focused on insecure attachment styles as mediators in this relationship among a sample of adolescents. Analyses were also conducted to determine whether gender moderated the association between physical maltreatment and BPD features. The sample consisted of 529 Italian adolescents between 14 and 18 years (M_age = 16.48, SD = 1.37). Participants completed a survey including three self-report questionnaires: CTQ-SF, ASQ, and BPI. Physical abuse was related to BPD features through insecure-anxious and insecure-avoidant attachment styles, whereas physical neglect was associated with BPD features only through insecure-avoidant attachment. Gender moderated the pathway between physical maltreatment and BPD features so that boys who experienced childhood physical abuse and neglect reported more BPD features than girls. This study expanded our knowledge of the role of insecure attachment styles in the onset of BPD features among adolescents with early experiences of childhood physical maltreatment. This study also advances our understanding of potential gender differences in the childhood maltreatment-BPD features link in adolescents.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescents
• physical maltreatment
• borderline personality disorder features
• insecure-anxious attachment style
• insecure-avoidant attachment style
• gender

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Author note

Giulia Costanzo, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Giorgio Falgares, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Giovanna Manna, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Maria Rita Infurna, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Giorgio Mastrilli, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Francesca Giannone, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy; Dorian A. Lamis, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA.

Ethical standards and informed consent

Approval was obtained from the Ethical Committee of the Department of Psychology, Educational Sciences and Human Movement at University of Palermo (protocol number 46685). The procedures used in this study adhere to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki.