HE LOVES ME - HE LOVES ME NOT - ATTACHMENT AND SEPARATION RESOLUTION OF ABUSED WOMEN

Working within an attachment perspective, we examined women's success at emotional separation from abusive partners. The attachment patterns of 63 abused women were assessed shortly after having left their abus ive relationships. Six months later their perceptions, feelings, and b ehaviors regarding the separation were assessed, to determine art over all level of separation resolution. As expected, attachment patterns a ssociated with a negative self model were overrepresented (88% of the sample had a predominant pattern of fearful or preoccupied attachment) . Further, preoccupation was associated with shorter relationship leng th, more frequent previous separations from the abusive relationship, continuing emotional involvement with partners after separation, and m ore frequent sexual contact with partners. These findings suggest that preoccupation may be a risk factor in successful separation resolutio n from abusive relationships.