Intimate relationships moderate the association between childhood sexual abuse and depression

The authors examined adult attachment, intimacy, and partner physical abuse as potential mediators or moderators of the association between childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and depression. Contrary to previous research, our resul ts showed that being a survivor of CSA was not necessarily associated with higher levels of physical abuse or with lower levels of intimacy. Thus, the relationship variables did not mediate the association between CSA and dep ression, However they did moderate this relationship. CSA survivors were bo th better protected from depression when they perceived their relationships to be of high quality and more vulnerable to depression when they did not than were nonsurvivors. However; an exception occurred when their relations hips were physically abusive: CSA survivors,oho were being physically abuse d reported fewer depressive symptoms than did nonsurvivors in the same situ ation. This finding was interpreted in terms of attachment theory and the s elf-verification hypothesis.