Childhood Physical Maltreatment and Borderline Personality Disorder Symptoms 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 adoles- cents between 14 and 18 years (Mage = 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 asso- ciated with BPD features only through insecure-avoidant attach- ment. Gender moderated the pathway between physical maltreatment and BPD features so that boys who experienced childhood physical abuse and neglect reported more BPD fea- tures 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 physi- cal maltreatment. This study also advances our understanding of potential gender differences in the childhood maltreatment- BPD features link in adolescents.