Coyle Phoebe, Van Doorn George, Teese Robert, Dye Jacob
Institute of Health and Wellbeing, Gippsland Campus, Federation University Australia, Churchill, Victoria, Australia.
Institute of Health and Wellbeing, Mt Helen Campus, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia.
Fam Process. 2025 Mar;64(1):e13088. doi: 10.1111/famp.13088. Epub 2024 Nov 25.
Infidelity is any behavior that breaks the implied agreement of exclusivity within a romantic relationship and is a leading cause of divorce. Previous literature has established a relationship between Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and infidelity perpetration. As experiencing childhood adversity does not guarantee an individual will engage in infidelity, mechanisms explaining this relationship should be explored. We investigated whether avoidant and anxious attachment styles mediate the relationship between ACEs and cheating frequency. A sample of 584 participants aged 18-82 years (M = 35.31, SD = 11.68, 67.0% female) was recruited and completed online versions of the Childhood Experiences Survey-17, the Relationship Structures Questionnaire, and frequency of cheating behavior in their current or most recent relationship. After dichotomizing gender and testing assumptions, data from 553 participants were available for analysis. A parallel mediation provided support for the first hypothesis, and partial support for the second. Specifically, ACEs were positively associated with anxious and avoidant attachment styles, but only avoidant attachment was significantly and positively associated with cheating frequency. As such, only avoidant attachment acted in a manner consistent with a mediator in the relationship between ACEs and infidelity. This result suggests a potential link between childhood adversity and the development of both avoidant and anxious attachment styles, but that individuals with an avoidant attachment style are more likely to engage in infidelity. These findings provide insight into the role attachment styles play in infidelity post-childhood adversity, and have the potential to guide therapeutic interventions for affected individuals.
不忠是指任何破坏浪漫关系中隐含的排他性协议的行为，是导致离婚的主要原因。以往的文献已经确立了童年不良经历（ACEs）与不忠行为之间的关系。由于经历童年逆境并不保证一个人会做出不忠行为，因此应该探索解释这种关系的机制。我们调查了回避型和焦虑型依恋风格是否介导了ACEs与出轨频率之间的关系。招募了584名年龄在18 - 82岁之间的参与者（M = 35.31，SD = 11.68，67.0%为女性），他们完成了在线版的《童年经历调查 - 17》、《关系结构问卷》以及他们当前或最近一段关系中的出轨行为频率。在对性别进行二分并检验假设后，553名参与者的数据可供分析。平行中介分析为第一个假设提供了支持，为第二个假设提供了部分支持。具体而言，ACEs与焦虑型和回避型依恋风格呈正相关，但只有回避型依恋与出轨频率呈显著正相关。因此，只有回避型依恋在ACEs与不忠之间的关系中起到了中介作用。这一结果表明童年逆境与回避型和焦虑型依恋风格的发展之间可能存在联系，但回避型依恋风格的个体更有可能做出不忠行为。这些发现为依恋风格在童年逆境后的不忠行为中所起的作用提供了见解，并有可能为受影响的个体指导治疗干预。
