Session: Pathways to Sexual Violence: Abuse, Attachment, and Dysregulation (Society for Social Work and Research 23rd Annual Conference - Ending Gender Based, Family and Community Violence)

Many etiological models have delineated pathways to sexual violence through developmental experiences including sexual and physical abuse (Knight & Sims-Knight, 2004), attachment styles (Beech & Mitchell, 2005), and emotional and behavioral dysregulation (Ward, 2014). Some theoretical frameworks even integrate these concepts as causal steps to sexual violence (Grady, Levenson, & Bolder, 2016; Marshall & Barbaree, 1990; Marshall &Marshall, 2000; Ward, 2014), as the intersection of early life abuse, and relational experiences or attachment significantly contribute to deficits in regulation that can sequentially lead to sexual violent behaviors. However, while different iterations of these etiological models have been proposed, much remains to be understood in the linear succession between early developmental risk factors, including attachment insecurity, and later sexual violence.

In this symposium, we will present three interrelated research papers that empirically explore the connections between early life abuse, attachment, emotional regulation, and callous/unemotional traits among individuals involved in the criminal justice system for sexual violence. In the first paper, we will present research that explores the direct and indirect relationships between adverse childhood experiences and four emotional and behavioral dysregulation outcomes, as well as the mediating effects of anxious and avoidant attachment. In the second paper, we will present findings that reveal consecutive linkages and intermediary pathways between anxious and avoidant attachment, dysregulation, callousness, delinquency, and sexual violence. In the third paper, we will present research that examines the linkages between attachment styles and psychopathy, paying particular attention to traits that are measured using the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised. Treatment, research, and policy implications will be discussed after each presentation. We will focus especially on prevention and intervention strategies that social workers can use in practice settings.