Malevolent object relations: A multimethod study of female survivors of childhood abuse

This study examined the connection between emotional, physical, and sexual abuse in childhood and three methods of assessing malevolent object representations. Sixty adult women, recruited from an urban primary ‐care clinic, were administered the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), the Object Relations Inventory (ORI) interview, and a version of the Early Memories Test (EMT)/interview. Ratings of malevolent object relations were obtained using the affect‐tone dimension from the Social Cognition and Objec t Relations (SCORS‐G) scale with both TAT and early memory narratives and through Malevolence ratings from the ORI interview. It was found that, outside of emotional abuse, ORI interview ratings of malevolence consistently differentiated adult childhood abuse groups and nonabuse groups, whereas ea rly memory ratings of malevolence differentiated groups in two of four analyses. Malevolence ratings based upon TAT ratings failed to differentiate any type of abuse from nonabuse. These findings suggest that the use of malevolence ratings from the ORI and early memory narratives are preferred metho ds for assessing malevolent object relations in urban‐dwelling women who have been victimized as children.

Source: Personality and Mental Health - May 4, 2021 Category: Psychiatry Authors: Brett E. Adams, John H. Porcerelli, Steven Abell, Steven K. Huprich Tags: RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research