A Validation Study of the Global Measure of Sexual Satisfaction in Sexually Active Adolescents

Positive views of adolescents' sexuality have only begun to garner interest in the last two decades. Despite great strides in this emerging area, progress is limited by the paucity of valid and reliable measures among this population. The goal of this study was to validate the widely used adult five-item Global Measure of Sexual Satisfaction (GMSEX) in a large sample of sexually active adolescents. A total of 1,036 adolescents (516 girls, 49.8%) aged between 14 and 17 years (M_age = 14.62; SD = 0.66) were recruited to investigate the reliability and validity of the GMSEX. The GMSEX yielded strong psychometric properties in adolescents, including factor structure, measurement invariance, and reliability. Results showed that the scale works similarly for boys and girls as well as for heterosexual, cisgender, and sexual minority adolescents. The GMSEX is a short, reliable, and valid measure of sexual satisfaction that can be used in future studies focusing on adolescents' sexuality and relationships.

Associations between Childhood Sexual Abuse and Sexual Well-being in Adulthood: A Systematic Literature Review

Child sexual abuse (CSA) tends to occur in close relationships and involves sexual acts and betrayal. Thus, it is thought to affect sexual well-being in adulthood more so than any other form of childhood trauma. Research conducted over the last decade resulted in an impressive diversity of evidence reporting that CSA may be related to greater sexual dysfunction and lower sexual satisfaction as an adult, but also to higher levels of sexual compulsivity and sexual risk behaviors. Some studies also found no significant association between CSA and adult sexual well-being. Faced with these mixed results, understanding how CSA may affect sexual well-being in adulthood remains challenging for clinicians and researchers. The aim of this comprehensive literature review was to synthesize the empirical studies published in the last five years documenting the associations between CSA and several indicators of sexual well-being in adults excluding risky sexual behaviors. The literature search yielded 18 eligible studies which mainly examined five domains of sexual outcomes of CSA: sexual function, sexual satisfaction, sex-related cognitions, sexual behaviors and affective components of sexuality. Findings suggest that CSA is not unanimously related to all domains of sexual well-being, but rather, that associations are largely a function of the presence of other comorbidities or nature of the sample. Moreover, men are still significantly underrepresented in reviewed studies. Implications of the findings will be discussed in light of their relevance for clinicians and for researchers about gaps in current literature need to be filled.

It's Good to Have You: The Moderator Role of Relationship Satisfaction in the Link Between Child Sexual Abuse and Sexual Difficulties

Research has revealed a significant prevalence of sexual problems in adulthood among child sexual abuse (CSA) survivors, yet many survivors do not report such difficulties. This study examined the moderator role of relationship satisfaction in the association between CSA and sexual difficulties in adulthood. Questionnaires assessing history of CSA, sexual difficulties, and relationship satisfaction were completed by 320 adults in intimate relationships. Analyses indicated that CSA survivors who were highly dissatisfied with their relationships reported more sexual difficulties than those who were satisfied with their relationships. Results highlight the importance of positive intimate relationships when working with CSA survivors.

Intimate Partner Violence in Male Survivors of Child Maltreatment: A Meta-Analysis

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major public health concern. Yet, despite an increasingly extensive literature on interpersonal violence, research on male victims of IPV remains sparse and the associations between different forms of child maltreatment (CM) and IPV victimization and perpetration in men remains unclear. The present meta-analysis evaluated five different forms of CM (sexual, physical, and psychological abuses, neglect, and witnessing IPV) as they predicted sexual, psychological, and physical IPV perpetration and victimization in men. Overall, most available studies examined men as perpetrators of IPV, whereas studies of victimization in men were relatively scarce. Results reveal an overall significant association ( r = .19) between CM and IPV. The magnitude of this effect did not vary as a function of type (perpetration vs. victimization) or form (sexual, psychological, or physical) of IPV. Although all forms of CM were related to IPV, with effect sizes ranging from .05 (neglect and IPV victimization) to .26 (psychological abuse and IPV victimization), these associations varied in magnitude according to the type of CM. Findings suggest the importance of expanding research on CM and IPV to include a range of different kinds of abuse and neglect and to raise concerns about the experience of men as both victims and perpetrators of IPV.

The Disorganized Response Scale: Construct validity of a potential self-report measure of disorganized attachment

OBJECTIVE

Based on the paucity of self-report measures of disorganized attachment (DA), we developed and tested a scale examining adults' self-reported disorganized verbalizations, cognitions, and behaviors when discussing their childhoods.

METHOD

The Disorganized Response Scale (DRS) was created and administered to 640 university students, and its associations with variables known to covary with DA, such as childhood maltreatment, insecure attachment, and psychological symptoms, were examined.

RESULTS

Factor analysis of DRS items revealed a single 15-item dimension that reflected participants' self-reported disorganized responses when discussing their childhoods. Structural equation modeling indicated a good fit to a model in which fearful caretaking and childhood abuse and neglect were associated with the DRS. In turn, the DRS, along with anxious and avoidant attachment, was independently related to symptoms and partially mediated the relationship between child maltreatment and symptomatology. Hierarchical multiple regression indicated that the DRS accounted for significant additional variance in posttraumatic stress, externalization, somatization, and, especially, dissociation, even after demographics and both anxious and avoidant attachment were taken into account.

CONCLUSIONS

Analyses support the construct validity of the DRS as a measure of disorganized attachment-related responses in adults. Further research is indicated to replicate these findings and to evaluate their convergence with interview measures of DA. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Acute Stress Symptoms in Seriously Injured Patients: Precipitating Versus Cumulative Trauma and the Contribution of Peritraumatic Distress

The relationship between type of trauma exposure, cumulative trauma, peritraumatic distress, and subsequent acute stress disorder (ASD) symptoms was examined prospectively in 96 individuals presenting with acute medical injuries to a Level 1 emergency/trauma department. Common precipitating traumas included motor vehicle-related events, stabbings, shootings, and physical assaults. At 2 to 3 weeks follow-up, 22.9% of participants had developed ASD. Univariate analysis revealed no relationship between type of precipitating trauma and ASD symptoms, whereas robust path analysis indicated direct effects of gender, lifetime cumulative trauma exposure, and peritraumatic distress. Peritraumatic distress did not mediate the association between cumulative trauma and symptoms, but did mediate the association between gender and symptomatology. These results, which account for 23.1% of the variance in ASD symptoms, suggest that ASD may be more due to cumulative trauma exposure than the nature of the precipitating trauma, but that cumulative trauma does not exert its primary effect by increasing peritraumatic distress to the most recent trauma.

Cumulative Childhood Trauma and Adult Sexual Satisfaction: Mediation by Affect Dysregulation and Sexual Anxiety in Men and Women

Childhood cumulative trauma (CCT) refers to an amalgam of childhood maltreatment experiences that can lead to a range of symptoms and problems in adulthood. The current study examined an integrative model of CCT for its relevance to psychosexual adjustment in adult survivors. A total of 620 participants aged 18 years and over completed a questionnaire assessing early life experiences, affect dysregulation, sexual anxiety, and sexual satisfaction. Path analyses confirmed the hypothesis that CCT is associated with affect dysregulation and sexual anxiety that, in turn, predict lower levels of sexual satisfaction. The validity of this mediational model was demonstrated for different operationalizations of CCT. The results suggested that sex therapists, who are likely to encounter CCT survivors in their practice, should consider targeting affect dysregulation in their efforts to decrease sexual anxiety and increase sexual satisfaction.

Disengaged parenting: Structural equation modeling with child abuse, insecure attachment, and adult symptomatology

Based on attachment theory, we hypothesized that self-reported childhood experiences of disengaged parenting (DP) would predict adults' psychological symptoms even more than, on average, childhood sexual, physical, or psychological abuse. In a large (N=640) university sample, bootstrapped multiple regression analyses indicated that although various forms of child maltreatment were correlated with symptomatology at the univariate level, DP was the primary multivariate predictor. Structural equation modeling indicated significant direct paths from (a) DP to both nonsexual child maltreatment and sexual abuse, (b) DP and nonsexual child maltreatment to insecure attachment, and (c) sexual abuse and insecure attachment to symptomatology. There were significant indirect effects of DP on psychological symptoms through sexual and nonsexual abuse, as well as through attachment. These results suggest that although child abuse has direct and indirect impacts on psychological symptoms, exposure to DP may be especially detrimental, both by increasing the risk of child abuse and by virtue of its impacts on attachment insecurity. They also support the potential use of attachment-oriented intervention in the treatment of adults maltreated as children.

Child Sexual Abuse, Sexual Anxiety, and Sexual Satisfaction: The Role of Self-Capacities

Research indicates that child sexual abuse produces lasting alterations in interpersonal relatedness, identity, and affect regulation, often referred to as self-capacity disturbance. Child sexual abuse also has been shown to negatively impact sexual functioning. This study examined the role of altered self-capacities in mediating the relationship between child sexual abuse and sexual responses. Path analysis revealed that child sexual abuse was related to sexual anxiety and decreased sexual satisfaction through its association with reduced self-awareness and a propensity to be involved in difficult interpersonal relationships.

Perceiving that one's partner is supportive moderates the associations among attachment insecurity and psychosexual variables

Attachment representations are associated with psychosexual adjustment in intimate relationships (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2007). Few studies, however, have investigated relationship processes modulating the effect of attachment insecurity on sexuality (Dewitte, 2012). This study examined whether perceived partner support moderates associations among romantic attachment (i.e., anxiety and avoidance) and sexual self-esteem, sexual anxiety, and sexual assertiveness in individuals involved in a romantic relationship (N=214). Results showed that individuals high on avoidance reported lower sexual self-esteem and assertiveness, as well as more sexual anxiety. Unexpectedly, they reported more sexual anxiety and poorer sexual assertiveness when partner support was perceived to be high. Moreover, low perceived partner support was related to higher sexual self-esteem in women scoring high on attachment avoidance whereas high perceived partner support was related to higher sexual self-esteem in men scoring high on avoidance. Individuals scoring high on attachment anxiety reported poorer sexual self-esteem and more sexual anxiety when partner support was perceived to be low, but attachment anxiety was unrelated to either sexual anxiety or self-esteem when partner support was perceived to be high. Findings are consistent with attachment theory and suggest clinical implications for individuals presenting with attachment insecurity.