Rumination as a Mediator of Attachment Anxiety and Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety Among Women
Open Access
- Author:
- Land, Marie Louise
- Graduate Program:
- Counseling Psychology
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- May 03, 2012
- Committee Members:
- Susan Woodhouse, Dissertation Advisor/Co-Advisor
Elizabeth Skowron, Committee Member
Mary Mc Clanahan, Committee Member
Catherine Augustine, Committee Member
Kathleen Bieschke, Special Member - Keywords:
- Rumination
Attachment
Anxiety
Depression
Women - Abstract:
- The objective of this study was to examine whether rumination served as a mediator of attachment anxiety and psychological distress among university women. Two overarching mediational models were examined: (a) Rumination as a mediator of the association between attachment anxiety and depressive symptoms and (b) Rumination as a mediator of the link between attachment anxiety and anxiety symptoms. In the second model, two sub-models were examined: one predicting trait anxiety (a more stable and enduring personality characteristic) as an outcome, and the second predicting state anxiety (momentary, situationally-based experiences of anxiety). Each variable was assessed using quantitative self-report measures completed by female students (n = 123) at three universities in the United States. The Baron and Kenny (1986) method of testing mediation was used. Results showed that rumination fully mediated the relation between attachment anxiety and two of the outcome variables (depressive symptoms, trait anxiety symptoms) and partially mediated the relation between attachment anxiety and state anxiety. Tests of reverse mediational models were analyzed to rule out the possibility that symptoms were causing brooding rumination, which in turn was influencing attachment anxiety. Tests of these models, however, suggested that it was not possible to rule out reverse mediation. Conclusions and implications for clinical work and future research are discussed.