The Hidden Roots of Interpersonal Aggressiveness: Dependency, Jealousy, and Revenge

The study examined how regulation of affective dependence relates to aggressiveness via jealousy and revenge. Two opposing dependency patterns – Pathological Affective Dependence (PAD) and Fear of Intimacy (FoI) – were tested against internalized (anger/hostility) and externalized (physical/verbal) aggressiveness. Adults from the general population (N = 437; 330 women, 107 men; M(age) = 32.9) completed measures of PAD, FoI, cognitive and behavioral jealousy, revenge motivation, and aggression. Structural equation models specified PAD/FoI as exogenous predictors, jealousy facets as parallel mediators, and revenge as a downstream mediator. PAD predicted both behavioral and cognitive jealousy; FoI predicted cognitive – but not behavioral – jealousy. Both jealousy types predicted revenge, which was positively associated with internalized and externalized aggressiveness. Behavioral jealousy also showed direct positive effects on both aggression forms, whereas cognitive jealousy had no direct effects. PAD and FoI retained direct positive associations with internalized aggressiveness; direct paths to externalized aggressiveness were non-significant for PAD and marginal for FoI. Jealousy-driven revenge appears to be a proximal pathway linking unregulated dependency to aggressive behavior. Targeting monitoring/controlling tendencies (behavioral jealousy), suspicious rumination (cognitive jealousy), and revenge motivations may help prevent escalation of relationship conflict.