Childhood maltreatment, object relations, and suicidal behavior in women

Findings from a study examining object relations (OR) as a mediator of the link between childhood maltreatment and suicidal behavior in a sample of predominantly low-income, African American women (suicide attempters: n = 53; nonattempters: n = 106) revealed that each OR dimension fully, yet differentially, mediated specific links between 5 types of childhood maltreatment (sexual, physical, and emotional abuse, and emotional and physical neglect) and suicide attempt status, The alienation subscale of 1 of the 2 OR measures used was the most robust mediator, fully mediating the links between all types of childhood maltreatment and suicide attempt status. For both childhood sexual abuse and physical neglect, the links with suicide attempt status were fully mediated by 5 of 6 OR dimensions measured, whereas the other childhood maltreatment types (physical abuse, emotional abuse, and emotional neglect) were fully mediated by just 1 or 2 OR dimensions. Research directions and clinical implications of the findings are discussed.