Peplau Theory on Interpersonal Relations & Bowlby Theory on Human Attachment Essay Assignment Paper

Peplau Theory on Interpersonal Relations & Bowlby Theory on Human Attachment Essay Assignment Paper

Peplau Theory on Interpersonal Relations & Bowlby Theory on Human Attachment Essay Assignment Paper
Please answer the following 2 questions:
1. In what ways might Peplau’s theory of interpersonal relations need to be revised to be the most useful to nurses in the health care environment in which contact time between nurse and client is limited?
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2. One of the patterns of attachment is referred to as ”earned secure” This pattern, characterized by coherence and balance, is achieved by adults who experienced unloving or harsh parenting. What individual characteristics or life experiences might contribute to achievement of this pattern?
Peplau Theory on Interpersonal Relations & Bowlby Theory on Human Attachment Essay Assignment Paper
Application of Attachment Theory to Male Violence Toward Female Intimates
Peplau’s Theory of Interpersonal Relations
The future of the Theory of Interpersonal Relations – A personal reflection on Peplau’s legacy
The real and the researchable- A brief review of the contribution of John Bowlby
Joumal of Family Violence, VoL 12, No. 2, 1997
Application of Attachment Theory to Male
Violence Toward Female Intimates
John E. Kesner,!’” Teresa Julian,^ Patrick C. McKenry^
Ninety one men were interviewed regarding their intimate relationships and
childhood experiences. A secondary analysis of an extant data set was
conducted to explore the applicability of Bowlby’s attachment theory in
explaining the etiology of male intimate violence. Various attachment-related
variables were hypothesized to be related to male intimate violence. Results of
a hierarchical regression analysis indicated that the attachment cluster of
variables served as unique predictors of male intimate violence. The male’s
perceived relationship support and recollection of maternal relationship were
the two significant predictors of male intimate violence within the attachment
cluster. Race and education were also found to be significant predictors of
male violence toward a female intimate.
KEY WORDS: attachment theory; male violence; domestic violence; hierarchical regression
analysis.
INTRODUCTION
Violence perpetrated by male intimates may be the most common origin
of injuries to women (Hadiey, 1992; Stark and Flitcraft, 1985), A survey
by the National Institute of Justice reports that an average of a half million
violent acts are committed against women by intimates each year (U.S. De-
‘Department of Early Childhood Education, College of Education, Georgia State University,
Atlanta, Georgia 30303.
^Department of Nursing, Otterbein College, Westerville, Ohio 43081.
^Department of Family Relations and Human Development and Department of Black Studies,
College of Human Ecology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210.
‘*Tt> whom correspondence should be addressed.
211
0885-7482/97/O60(W)211$12J0/O C 1997 Plenum Publishing Corporation
212 Kesner et at.
partment of Justice, 1994), Furthermore, 75% of all homicides of women
are perpetrated by male intimate partners (Campbell, 1992).
Despite much media attention, systematic research conceming male
hostility and aggression toward women is limited (Margolin et al., 1988;
Steinmetz, 1987). Most studies of domestic violence have been atheoretical,
focusing on conceptually unrelated individual factors such as alcohol, stage
in the life cycle, and social class—often in isolation from one another (Howell
and Pugliesi, 1988, Gelles and Comell, 1990).
It was thus the purpose of this study to apply concepts from attachment
to determine their utility in explaining to male violence toward female
intimates.
ATTACHMENT THEORY
Attachment theory (Bowlby, 1969) is an ethological theory of interpersonal
relationships that emphasizes the evolutionary significance of intimate
relationships, especially those in early childhood. Bowlby believed
that individuals possess an inbom need for close attachments to significant
others in order to survive (Bowlby, 1969). The “attachment behavioral system”
is made up of behaviors that elicit care and nurturing from primary
caregiver. Satisfaction of attachment needs by the primary caregiver enables
the individual to form a secure attachment with the caregiver. When
stressed, the attachment behavioral system achieves a state of heightened
activation motivating the individual to seek out the attachment figure for
support, nurturance and protection. Based on the history of early attachment
relationships an “internal working model” is formed which serves as
the foundation for future relationships (Bowlby, 1969). The internal working
model guides and motivates the individual’s relationship behaviors by
predicting the availability of the attachment figure to provide care and nurturance.
Thus, individuals with an insecure model(i.e., one that is based on
a history of the attachment figure not meeting attachment needs) will expect
future attachment figures to similarly not meet these needs. Individuals
who have a history of secure relationships will develop an intemal working
model of relationships that anticipates the attachment figures will meet attachment
needs.
Attachment theory has been used extensively to explain parent-child
relationships (Ainsworth et ai, 1978; Bretherton, 1987; Main et al., 1985;
Lyons-Ruth et al., 1990). There is abundant evidence supporting the role
of attachment security in infiuencing social competence in children. However,
attachment theorists and researchers believe early childhood relationAttachment
Theoty 213
ships play a major role in interpersonal relationships throughout the
lifespan (Bowlby, 1988),
Adult Attachment
Adult attachment researchers contend that romantic love is an attachment
process (Hazan and Shaver, 1987). During adult relationships,
Ainsworth (1989) argues that attachment issues are still salient and while
not replacing the initial attachment figure, the intimate other tends to become
the primary attachment figure for the individual. According to attachment
theory, individuals in adult intimate relationships are still looking
for the same sense of security and support from their partners that was
important in their secure attachment relationships during early childhood.
Hazan and Shaver (1987) have identified adult “attachment styles” that
characterize how an individual thinks about intimate relationships. These
styles represent characteristic ways of thinking about intimate relationships
based on past experiences. Additionally, they guide the interpretation of
incoming relationship information in accordance with the expectations built
into the model (Bretherton, 1987). These attachment styles have been validated
against retrospective accounts of early childhood attachment experiences
(Shaver and Brennan, 1992).
Stress and the Attachment Behavioral System
From an attachment perspective, the effects of stress can be twofold.
In childhood, stressful situations tend to activate the attachment behaviors
(attachment behavioral system) (Bowlby, 1973), causing the individual to
seek out the attachment figure for support and comfort. Excessive stress
in childhood, without amelioration by a sensitive caregiver, can negatively
infiuence the security of the developing attachment relationship, adversely
affecting one way of dealing with stress. Past research clearly indicates that
stress is highly related to relationship violence (e.g., MacEwen and Barling,
1988; Neidig et al, 1986). However, stress levels may trigger attachment
issues which lead to violence. In adult relationships, stress can be alleviated
by various coping mechanisms (e.g., including obtaining support from a secure
attachment relationship). However, if coping resources are limited due
to adverse childhood experiences, and if the source of stress is the attachment
relationship, an intense confiict can result. Thus, individuals and families
who find themselves in situations where they are unable to successfully
cope with the demands of stress find that their frustrations are likely to
214 Kesner et al.
increase, and this frustration may result in violent behavior (Dollard et al,
1939).
Individuals operating with an insecure attachment model may perceive
ambiguous behaviors by the intimate other as rejecting and unsupportive.
Thus, life stress may be compounded when one is predisposed to expect
rejection fi-om the intimate partner, and yet the intimate partner may be
the only source of support an individual has to alleviate stress.
Aggression and the Attachment Behavioral System
Aggression has been linked to the attachment behavioral system during
early childhood. Bowlby (1988) states that angry behavior is a way that
children may communicate to their primary attachment figure that their
attachment behavioral system has been activated and that attachment needs
are not being met. This generally occurs in response to a separation where
the child perceives that the attachment figure is unavailable. Bowlby termed
this “functional anger.” That is, it communicates to the attachment figure
displeasure at being separated, and if responded to appropriately by the
attachment figure, will facilitate a secure relationship.
A consistent history of insecure attachment experiences may distort
this functional anger into violence by the male. Males who batter their
wives may be utilizing physical violence during times that they perceive an
attachment need not being met by their partners. Thus violence by the
male may be a dysfunctional coping mechanism for dealing with perceived
unresponsiveness or rejection by the intimate partner.
HYPOTHESES
Separation from the attachment figure in adult relationships becomes
a matter of perceived availability of relationship support from the partner
rather than physical proximity. That is, psychological availability of the attachment
figure replaces the need for physical closeness that is important
in childhood. Thus, the male’s perception of the amount of relationship support
provided to him by his partner may impact the degree of male perpetuated
violence toward his female partner.
An individual with an insecure attachment history may not have the
usual coping mechanisms that a secure individual would have (i.e., the attachment
figure). Therefore, stress may not be able to be alleviated and,
thus an individual with an insecure attachment model may be experiencing
a high level of negative life events stress.
Attachment Theory 215
Attachment theory contends that the sense of self develops concurrently
with the intemal model of attachment relationships. Consequently,
individuals who receive insensitive and inappropriate caregiving during
early childhood may develop the sense that they are unworthy of love and
nurturing (Bretherton 1987, 1992). Additionally, Collins and Read (1990)
have found lower levels of self-esteem in adults with insecure attachment
styles. Thus, the male’s level of self-esteem may be an indicator of attachment
security and another important variable in understanding interpersonal violence.
During early childhood, the attachment behavioral system is activated
in an environment of insensitive caregiving. Chronic insensitivity by the
caregiver can result in persistent activation of the attachment behavioral
system. Bowlby posited that the attachment behavioral system, because of
its inherent survival value, dominates other behavioral systems (Bowlby,
1969), Thus, activation of the attachment behavioral system suppresses
other behavioral systems, and chronic activation may inhibit the development
of autonomy and individuation (Bretherton, 1987, 1992). If the intimate
other is the primary attachment figure, the male’s perception of how
autonomous he is in the intimate relationship may be an indicator of the
security of the relationship and may be predictive of male violence toward
the intimate.
Attachment theory contends that the success of initial attachment relationship
exerts a unique influence on subsequent relationships. Given the
fact that the majority of the caregiving in westem society is performed by
the mother this relationship is believed to have special significance. Therefore,
recollections of the mother may be an indicator of attachment history
and security.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between
the attachment related factors oi perceived relationship support, negative life
events stress, self esteem, sense of autonomy, and perceived quality of early
childhood relationship and male violence toward a female intimate. The
variables in this study were selected from an extant data set, and were not
originally chosen to measure attachment. However, they were theoretically
related to attachment concepts to make them useful in this preliminary
examination of the relationship between attachment and male violence.
Specifically, it was hypothesized that attachment related variables
would be correlated with and serve as unique predictors of male intimate
violence; that is, they would account for unique variance in a model predicting
male violence against a female intimate beyond that which would
be accounted for by significant demographic variables.
216 Kesner et al.
METHODS
Subjects
A total of 94 men were interviewed; 41 were defined as physically violent
toward their spouse, and fifty were defined as nonviolent. Three subjects
were eliminated from the final data analysis because of incomplete
interviews.
Some of the violent males were recmited from a population of men
participating in a group program for male batterers at a community mental
health center in a large midwestern city. Most of the men participating in
this mental health program were court referrals; others were therapeutic
referrals. Study inclusion criteria included (a) first-time participation in the
program, and (b) involvement in an intimate relationship with a female.
Agency personnel assisted in the recmitment of subjects.
Other participants in the violent group and all of the nonviolent subjects
were solicited through newspaper advertisements for participants in
a study of men’s health and family roles. Those men whose Confiict/Tkctics
Scale scores indicated any physical violence toward their female intimate
in the past year were assigned to the violent group. Additional inclusion
criteria for the comparison group of nonviolent men were: (a) involvement
in an intimate relationship for at least the past year (i.e., married, cohabitating
or just recently divorced); and (b) annual incomes of less than thirty
thousand dollars per year and educational levels of less than fourteen years,
comparable to the men participating in the group program for male batterers
at the mental health center.
After all participants were screened, an appointment was scheduled
for a one hour, face-to-face interview. Subjects were interviewed by trained
interviewers. The participants were informed of their voluntary status, that
they could withdraw at anytime, and that their responses were confidential.
Consent forms were reviewed and signed, and subjects were reimbursed
$25 for their participation in the study. Data collection for both groups of
males took place at a university medical research center. A combination
of interview and self-report measures were used.
Sample Characteristics
As shown in Tkble I, the mean ages of the nonviolent and violent
groups were comparable (violent = 31.8, and nonviolent = 33). Approximately
percent of the violent males were Caucasian, and 38% were African-
American, whereas Caucasians represented 88% and African-American
Attachment Theory 217
represented 12% of the nonviolent group. Both groups were similar in
terms of marital status. However, a higher percentage of the violent group
reported being separated from their spouses, whereas members of the nonviolent
group were more likely to report being married. Violent subjects
reported incomes of less than $5000 more frequently than nonviolent males.
The majority of the incomes of both nonviolent and violent men fell within
the $10,000 to $25,000 range. Although both groups had roughly similar
educational levels, the participants that were categorized in the violent
group had almost 1 year less education (x = 12,71 years) than the nonviolent
group (x = 13.38 years). Most participants reported good to excellent
health; only four violent males and four nonviolent males perceived
their health as less than good.
Instrumentation
The interview consisted of various demographic background questions
as well as standardized instmmentation. Demographic data included respondent’s
age, race, marital/cohabitation status, socioeconomic status, history
of parental abuse, and health status. Poverty status was defined by an
Thhie I, Selected Sociodemographic Characteristics of Study Participants
Violent Males
(« = 41)
Nonviolent Males
(« = 50)
Age
X = 31.8 {SD = 7.63)
Race
White = 62% (n = 26)
Black = 38% {n = 16)
Marital status
Married = 31.0% (n = 13)
Separated = 21.4% (n = 19)
Divorced = 11.9% (n = 5)
Single = 35.7% (/» = 15)
tncome
Less than $5,000 = 21.4% (n = 9)
$5,000 to $10,000 = 11.9% (n = 5)
$10,000 to $24,999 = 50.0% (« = 1)
$25,000 to $30,000 = 14.3% {n = 6)
Education
X = 12.71 {SD = 2.2)
Health status
Excellent = 40.5%
Good = 40.0%
Fair = 9.5%
Poor = 0.0%
X = 33.0 {SD = 7.7)
White = 88% (n = 44)
Black = 12% {n = 6)
Married = 46% (« = 23)
Separated = 6% (n = 3)
Divorced = 10% (n = 10)
Single = 28% {n = 14)
Less than $5,000 = 6% (n = 3)
$5,000 to $10,000 = 20% (n = 10)
$10,000 to $24,999 = 50% {n = 25)
$25,000 to $30,000 = 24% {n =12)
X = 13.4 {SD = 1.7)
Excellent = 56.0% (n = 28)
Good = 36.0% {n = 18)
Fair = 8.0% (n = 4)
Poor = 0.0% {n = 0)
218 Kesner et at.
annual family income of $10,000 or less; the Federal poverty line for a
family of three was approximately $9900 in 1989 (U.S. Bureau of the Census,
1991). Males whose incomes were greater than $10,000 were categorized
as not being within the poverty range. Educational level was defined
by the number of completed years of education. The race of the subject
was defined either as Caucasian or African-American; no other racial
groups were represented.
Perceived Relationship Support
Male perceived relationship support was measured by the support
subscale of the Autonomy/Relatedness Inventory (ARI) (Schaefer and Edgerton,
1982). This subscale was computed by summing four items on the
ARI that assessed the degree to which the intimate partner provides emotional
support to the respondent. Items asked how much the partner “Is
there when I need her,” or “Does what she can to make things easier for
me,” Five possible responses ranged from “not at all like her” to “very
much like her.” These items are thought to assess issues salient to attachment
theory. Whether an individual feels that he can turn to the attachment
figure when stressed is critical for secure attachment formation. Reliability
for relationship support was found to be .91. Vahdity was moderate to
strong as evidenced by correlations with the Spanier Dyadic Adjustment
Scale (Schaefer and Edgerton, 1982). The Cronbach alpha reliability for
the entire scale in this study was .72.
Self-Esteem
Self-esteem was measured by the Rosenberg (1979) Self-Esteem Scale.
This measure is a 10-item scale with a 5-point response range from
(l)”strongly disagree” to (5) “strongly agree.” Items tap issues of esteem
such as personal qualities, abilities, and general evaluation of the self. This
measure has been found to have high intemal consistency. In this study, the
Cronbach alpha coefficient was .91. The development of the sense of self
is linked to the development of attachment models, thus, the level of selfesteem
may indicate the security of the attachment model of an individual.
Sense of Autonomy
Sense of autonomy within the interpersonal relationship was measured
by four items of the autonomy subscale of the Autonomy/Relatedness InAttachment
Theory 219
ventory (Schaefer and Edgerton, 1982). Short statements about the autonomy
of the interpersonal relationship are asked covering topics such as personal
freedom, disagreements, and decision making. Attachment theory
contends that an individual strives to achieve a balance between autonomy
and satisfying attachment needs. Failure to alleviate attachment needs will
adversely affect the individuals abilify to achieve autonomy. Five possible
responses ranged from “not at all like her” to “very much like her.” The
Cronbach alpha reliability for this scale was ,69.
Perceived Quality of Early Chiidhood Relationship
Perceived quality of early childhood relationship was measured by asking
the respondent his recollection of his mother when growing up and
how often his mother expressed love and caring. This study variable was
measured on a Likert-type scale ranging from “Never” to “Rarely.” An
individual’s recollection of the maternal relationship is a good indicator of
attachment history. This perception is a critical component of many attachment
history measures (George, Kaplan, and Main, 1987; Pottharst and
Kessler, 1991), thus demonstrating face validity.
Perceived Life Stressors
Perceived life stressors were measured with the Life Experiences Survey
(Sarason et al, 1978); this instrument assesses perceived life stressors
within the past year. This 57-item self-report measure allows for respondents
to indicate events that they have experienced during the past year
and rate whether they perceived these events as positive or negative stressors.
Items covered topics related to work, home life (including intimate
relationships), finances, and personal health. Summing the ratings provided
a negative change score, a positive change score, and a total change score.
This measure was only administered once, so test-retest reliability is not
possible to determine. However, Sarason et al report test-retest correlations
for negative change were ,19 and ,53 (p < .001), positive change .56 and .88 (p < ,001), and total change score .63 and ,64 (p < .001). Aggression/Male Perpetrated Physical Violence Toward the Female Intimate Aggression/male perpetrated physical violence toward the female intimate was measured by the Conflict-Tkctics Scale (CTS) (Straus, 1979). The (CTS) is a 19-item self-report measure in which the individual reports on 220 Kesner et at. the tactics used in conflicts with the intimate partner during the past year, and then if these tactics have ever been used. The CTS has 19 descriptions of conflict tactics that range from less to most severe with the individual answering how many times in the past year each tactic has been used. These 19 items are broken down into three subscales: (a) reasoning; (b) verbal aggression; and (c) violence. The respondent answers in relation to himself and his intimate partner, using a 7-point scale ranging from 0 times to more than 20 times. For these analyses, only the violence subscale was used which includes only actual acts of physical violence against an intimate, Cronbach’s alpha was ,82 for the entire scale and .83 for the violence subscale. The nature of this measure yields a substantial number of subjects indicating no violence. This can create a highly skewed sample. Thus, a log procedure (Moore and McCabe, 1989) was utilized to normalize the distribution. RESULTS Univariate Analyses Initial univariate analysis indicated that demographic variables, male’s educational level and race, were significantly correlated (negative) with male physical violence against an intimate partner. Because of the dichotomous nature of the sample (either African American or Caucasian) a single dichotomous variable for race was created; subjects were coded either as 1 if they were Caucasian, or 0 if they were African American, T-tests were performed out on these and other demographic variables (i.e., male’s education, male’s race, male’s income, male’s marital status, and male’s physical health) to determine differences between the violent and nonviolent groups. Race was the only one of these demographic variables that showed significant differences between violent and non-violent males (t = 3,46, p < .01), Additionally, self-esteem, perceived relationship support, perceived relationship autonomy, and the male’s recollection of his mother, were significantly related (negative) with male physical violence. Male negative life events stress was positively related to male violence as indicated in Tkble II, Multiple Regression Analysis A hierarchical regression analysis was used to address study hypotheses because the intent of the study was to demonstrate a unique effect of attachment factors on male violence beyond that variance explained by demoAttachment Theory 221 •c p II O II ° II p ON ON .1), ON I II 3 II ° II o II S II 33 II p II p II ^ II O « ON » ON • ON on I N II jS l’ I 11 -I ..” o o -a II ,-i II ON ON ; II :: II m II c5 I li1 11 .,” o p II ^ II S II e * o i” li V V V 222 Kesner et al. graphic variables. Hierarchical regression determines if the addition of a set of variables significantly increases the i?^ accounted for beyond a previous set of variables (Cohen and Cohen, 1983). The independent variables were analyzed by structuring them in two clusters, demographic and attachment. The first cluster, included traditional demographic variables (i.e., race and educational level). Education and race were included because of their significance in relation to violence in the univariate analyses. The model that included only demographic variables accounted for 13% (F = 6.45, p < .01) of the variance in predicting male violence. Both male’s education and race were significant predictors of male violence (see Ikble III). The second cluster included the first cluster as well as the attachment related variables. The analysis indicated that the addition of attachment variables (i.e., perceived quality of early childhood mother-son relationship, self esteem, relationship support, sense of autonomy, and perceived life stressors) significantly increased the R^ of the model by 27% (F = 7.50, p < ,01). The model that included demographic and attachment related variables accounted for 40% of the variance in predicting male violence (F = 7,88, p < .001). The best predictor in this model was male perceived relationship support (F = 8.09, p < .01) (see Tkble IV). Other predictors in order of significance were race (F = 6.21, p < .05); recollection of mother (F = 5.15, p < .05); and education(F = 2.96, p < .05). Results of a stepwise regression using all independent variables yielded four significant variables, and also indicated that male perceived relationship support was the best predictor in the model. In order of entry into the regression equation, the variables were as follows: male perceived relationship support (F = 24.06,;? < .001); male life events stress (F = 7.39, p < .01); male’s recollection of mother (F = 5,34, p < .05); and male’s race (F = 6.40, p < .01). Because stress may interact with childhood and adult variables, resulting in variations in attachment with level of stress, interaction terms were Ibhle tu. Multiple Variable Male’s education Male’s race F^ = .13 F = 6.45 p < .01. Regression Analysis of Male Violence Tbward Female Selected Demographic ^riables Standardized Regression Coefficient -.10 -.63 Standard Error .05 .22 F 4.49 8.42 tntimates and P < .05 .01 Attachment Theory 223 Ihble IV Multiple Regression Analysis of Male Physical Violence Tbward a Female tntimate and Selected Independent Variables Variable Male’s education Male’s race Male’s recollection of mother Male’s preceived relationship support ^= .40 F = 7.88 p < .001. Standardized Regression Coefficient -.07 -.49 -.16 -.07 Standard Error .04 .20 .07 .02 F 2.96 6.21 5.15 8.09 P < .05 .05 .05 .01 created with two child attachment related variables and three adult attachment related variables. None of the interaction terms proved to be significantly related to male violence against a female intimate. DISCUSSION Results of these analyses indicate the potential value of an attachment theoretical perspective in predicting male physical violence against a female intimate. The model developed through the data analysis supports a major tenet of Bowlby’s (1969) attachment theory (i.e., early parent-child relationships may infiuence intimate relationship behavior throughout an individual’s life span). Results of this study indicated that the cluster of attachment-related variables was significantly related to male violence in interpersonal relationships. Specifically, violence in males was related to: (a) a perceived deficiency in love and caring from their mother while growing up; (b) lower self-esteem; (c) perception of less relationship support; (d) perceptions of low relationship autonomy and (e) number of recent life stressors. The strongest predictor of male violence in the regression model was male’s perceived relationship support from his female intimate. Although not specifically designed to measure attachment, the adult’s abilify to feel support from the intimate other may be a direct reflection of attachment securify. The fact that the male’s recollection of his relationship with his mother was also a significant predictor of male aggression further supports the salience of attachment issues in understanding male violence. Although this variable was not specifically designed to assess childhood attachment 224 Kesner et al. history, it assesses the male’s current understanding of his relationship with his mother. The perception of childhood attachment relationships is a critical component of adult attachment status (George et al, 1987). According to attachment theory, individuals who received insensitive and inappropriate caregiving from their primary attachment figure in childhood are more likely to have expectations for similar treatment in adult attachment relationships. That is, insecure attachments in childhood create models about intimate relationships that may persist into adulthood. The aggression that served a functional purpose in childhood by communicating attachment needs may become distorted into violence by the male who perceives the same insensitivify in his attachment relationship in adulthood even though it may not exist (Mayseless, 1991). Life events stress also appeared to have a significant effect on male violence. Although not significant in the multiple regression analysis, life event stress was the second variable to enter a stepwise regression analysis. In terms of attachment per se, the lack of interaction effect between attachment and life events stress on the dependent variable suggests that life stress did not confound the attachment system resulting in greater violence. The findings of this study did not indicate that the female intimates were ineffective primary attachment figures. It may be that men with insecure attachment histories may have unrealistic expectations which their partners can never fulfill. In these analyses male’s perception of relationship support is a key predictor of male intimate violence. Such findings would imply that female intimates may be in a vulnerable position with men who have insecure attachments. Consciously or unconsciously, the adult male may be predisposed to believe that the new primary attachment figure will not be available to assist him in times of stress and thus react with extreme aggressive behaviors. In addition, the findings of this study indicated that race and education were important variables in understanding male violence toward female intimates. Past findings relative to the relationship between African-American men, decreased educational opportunities, and the propensify for violence have been inconsistent (Allen and Straus, 1980; Stark and McEvoy, 1970). Void (1986) notes that violence among African-Americans is better explained by structural factors such as resource inequalify. It is important to note that in the stepwise regression analysis, race was the last variable to enter the model. Although a significant predictor, it only added 4% to the variance accounted for in this model. However, in this sample, Caucasians and African-Americans had similar earning power and educational attainment. Also, there were no racial differences in perceived life stressors. In addition, African-Americans in this study were significantly more likely to view their relationship with their female partner negatively. According to Attachment Theory 225 Staples (1988), there is tension in the Black male and Black female relationship because of the lack of opportunities available for Black males to succeed in the traditional good provide

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