The effects of attachment style and object relations on aggression in individuals with spousal violence: the mediating role of dark tetrad personality traits

This study investigated the impact of attachment style and object relations on aggression through the mediating role of dark tetrad personality traits using structural equation modeling (SEM). This clinical sample included 428 participants with spousal violence that were selected using purposive sampling in a descriptive study. The data was collected using the Adult Attachment Scale (AAS), the Object Relations and Reality Testing Inventory-Form O (ORRTI-FO), the Short Dark Tetrad (SD-4), and the Aggression Questionnaire (AQ). The analysis found that attachment styles have significant direct impacts on object relations and dark tetrad personality traits. Also, object relations and dark tetrad personality traits had a significant direct influence on aggression. Attachment styles with the mediator role of object relations and dark tetrad personality traits explained 72.7% of aggression. The results have shown a fitted SEM for the direct and indirect effects of attachment styles and object relations on aggression concerning the mediating role of dark tetrad personality traits. These findings have practical implications for psychotherapeutic intervention and community-based programs among perpetrators and victims of spousal violence.