The mediating role of feelings of shame and guilt in the relationship between attachment styles and covert relational aggression in marriage

This study has been aimed to investigate the mediating role of feelings of shame and guilt in the relationship of the attachment styles and covert relational aggression (CRA) in marriage. The present study is a correlational study as a type of structural equation modeling (SEM). The statistical population consisted of 320 married couples collected by convenience sampling in Birjand Collected data were analyzed by Pearson correlation coefficient and SEM methods. The results of the research showed that there is a significant relationship between research variables. Testing the conceptual model showed that feelings of shame and guilt had a significant mediating role in the relationship between anxiety attachment style and CRA (love withdrawal and social sabotage). According to the results, anxious attachment style has more effect on feelings of shame and guilt. The results indicated the effective role of secure attachment styles, anxiety and avoidance on love withdrawal. Feelings of shame had a significant positive relationship with both CRA and feelings of guilt had a significant relationship only with social sabotage. The results of the mediator role also showed a significant role of shame and guilt in the relationship between anxiety attachment style and CRA(love withdrawal and social sabotage).