Childhood abuse and maladaptive coping in care leavers: An exploratory study on attachment and Early Maladaptive Schemas

Care leavers face adversity and poor psychological outcomes, despite being a significantly under researched population. Childhood maltreatment is associated with attachment insecurity and Early Maladaptive Schemas (EMS); however, there is little research into the relationships between these variables, and none exploring these variables in care leavers. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between childhood maltreatment, attachment, EMS and maladaptive coping in care leavers, hypothesising that higher levels of childhood maltreatment would be associated with increased attachment insecurity, EMS severity and maladaptive coping. Participants were 53 UK-based adults, with experience of living in care during childhood. An opportunity sample and a within-subjects, cross-sectional survey design was used with hierarchical multiple regression. High levels of childhood maltreatment, attachment insecurity (both anxious and avoidant), EMS and maladaptive coping were found within the sample of care leavers. Hierarchical regression indicated that both attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance, and EMS domain 'disconnection and rejection' were significant predictors in the relationship between childhood maltreatment and maladaptive coping. The study adds to the current knowledge about psychological vulnerabilities for care leavers. Results highlight the importance of targeted assessment, formulation and psychological interventions targeting attachment domains and EMS, with particular focus on the disconnection and rejection schema domain for this population.