Abstract
This cross-sectional study evaluated the self-reported attachment style of 239 Swedish adolescents (ages 13 to 20) and investigated the relation between dissociation, attachment, and potentially traumatic events (PTEs). We had hypothesized that specific PTEs, including family-related emotional and physical abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse by non-relatives such as bullying, would interact with insecure attachment styles leading to higher levels of dissociation. Results show that insecure attachment styles predicted dissociative experiences (DE) independently of PTE exposure. Dissociative experiences related more strongly to PTE exposure when the adolescent had an anxious attachment style. Our results also suggest that higher rates of DE are related to an interaction between insecure attachment styles and the experience of verbal harassment and bullying, mainly by peers in school. We conclude that the relation between trauma and dissociation is complex, with both type of trauma and attachment style interacting with dissociative phenomena.
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