Evaluation of the relationship between symptom dimensions and attachment styles and disgust sensitivity in patients with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between symptom dimensions, attachment styles and disgust sensitivity in patients diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). 80 patients with obsessive compulsive disorder according to DSM-V diagnostic criteria and 80 healthy controls matched for age and gender were included in our study. Sociodemographic data form, Dimensional Obsession-Compulsion Scale (DOCS), Experiences in Close Relationships- Revized (ECR-R), Disgust Scale-Revised Form (DS-R) were applied to all cases. The participants in the OCD group and the control group were similar in terms of age, gender and marital status. Anxious attachment, avoidant attachment and disgust sensitivity scores were higher in the OCD group compared to the control group (p<0.01). There was a significant positive correlation between all symptom dimensions and anxious attachment (p<0.01) and disgust sensitivity scores (p<0.05) in the OCD group. Contamination and unacceptable thoughts symptom dimension scores were associated with avoidant attachment scores (p<0.01, p<0.05). In the OCD group, there was a positive correlation between both anxious attachment and avoidant attachment scores and the total, basic disgust and disgust for contamination subscale scores of the DS-R (p<0.05). In the control group, there was no significant correlation between ECR-R and DS-R scores. In this study, it was found that OCD symptom dimensions were associated with increased sensitivity to disgust and insecure attachment. In addition, it was found that insecure attachment was associated with increased sensitivity to disgust in OCD patients. The results of our study emphasize the importance of attachment styles and disgust sensitivity in the evaluation and treatment of OCD patients.