Attachment styles and unwanted consensual sex: Mediating role of Dark Triad traits

Abstract

Past research has shown that insecure attachment, particularly anxious attachment has a role to play in consenting to unwanted sex. While previous studies have taken various factors that may come into play in consenting to unwanted sex, they have not focused on understanding the role that the personality traits of the Dark Triad could play on unwanted consensual sex, particularly in the context of individuals’ attachment styles, we are studying the participants not as perpetrators of abuse, rather how they can be susceptible to giving consent to sex when they don’t want to due to underlying factors like attachment and personality traits, particularly the Dark Triad traits of personality. The current study has 274 participants (Females = 55.50%, Males = 43.80% and Non-Binary = 0.70%) and examines the role of personality traits of the Dark Triad on the relationship between attachment styles of participants and their unwanted consent to sex. We assumed that all three traits machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy would explain unwanted consensual sex and attachment styles, but only machiavellianism and psychopathy showed a partial role in explaining the relationship between both anxious attachment and avoidant attachment with unwanted consent to sex or sexual activity. This study can be used to help in understanding the lesser discussed nuances of what underlies sexual abuse.