Relationship attributions and dysfunctional sexual behaviors and cognitions among women who have experienced childhood sexual abuse

This study investigated the roles of attribution styles within intimate relationships (e.g., relationship attribution style -- causal and responsibility) in the development of dysfunctional sexual behaviors and cognitions (e.g., sexual motivation, sexual preoccupation, sexual anxiety, sexual depression, internal sexual control, and external sexual control) in adult female childhood sexual abuse (CSA) victims. One hundred and forty seven female participants between the ages of 18 and 54 (M = 23.84) completed this study; 87.8% of participants identified as Caucasian. Six hypotheses were tested; the main hypothesis of interest assessed if causal and/or responsibility attribution style would mediate the relationship between CSA and dysfunctional sexuality when controlling for covariates (substance use/psychopathology and emotion dysregulation). Results demonstrated that attribution style did not mediate the relationship between CSA and dysfunctional sexuality; however, attribution style did account for significant portions of variance in predicting dysfunctional sexuality. For example, causal attribution style (a) significantly predicted internal sexual control (which was not predicted by CSA and covariates), (b) accounted for a significant portion of variance in predicting sexual anxiety above/beyond CSA and covariates, and (c) accounted for a significant portion of variance in predicting decreased sexual motivation with women reporting higher levels of CSA. Responsibility attribution style significantly predicted internal sexual control (which was not significantly predicted by CSA and covariates) and accounted for a significant portion of variance over/above CSA and covariates in predicting sexual anxiety and sexual depression. Additionally, results demonstrated that substance use/psychopathology mediated the link between CSA and dysfunctional sexuality, specifically sexual preoccupation, sexual anxiety, and sexual depression. Results suggest that female CSA survivors who use substances, report psychological symptoms, and make maladaptive attributions for negative partner behaviors are at risk for negative outcomes regarding sexual behaviors and attitudes. Limitations include the self-report design of the study, as some participants noted that several items were confusing or ambiguous, the use of online sampling (e.g., missing data), and significant skewness/kurtosis of several study variables. Additionally, this study questioned participants on experiences that may have been aversive and/or distressing; thus, participants' responses to these items may have been influenced due to the nature of the items.