God-image and Romantic Partner Relationships: Emotional Neglect and Adult Women
Danette Alene Buchanan, (Ph.D.), Liberty University 

Dissertation Advisors:
Dr. John C. Thomas, Chair
Dr. Joy Mwendwa, Member
Dr. Yulanda Tyre, Member

​​ABSTRACT
​Childhood emotional neglect often leads to relationship dissatisfaction, psychopathology, decline in physical health, and permanent scars from a lack of emotional validation. Women who have grown up with a history of emotional invalidation are at risk for suicide, divorce, emotional instability, unstable relationships, and a chronic belief that they are not enough. Lacking emotional attachment from parents and other primary figures, girls and young women may transition into adulthood either anxiously attached, avoidant attached, or a combination of both. This state of dysphoria may extend into their perceptions of God and other authority figures. Counselors and other professional helpers such as clergy, teachers, and social service workers are uniquely positioned to offer critical resources beginning in early childhood and extending into adulthood. The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of childhood emotional neglect on romantic partner relationships by examining how women view God and their romantic partners. Does the image of God as loving, distant or cruel have any effect on romantic relationship satisfaction? This research study uses a quantitative, non-experimental cross-sectional survey to measure relationships between key variables. Women ages 18 and older who have ever identified with the Judeo-Christian at any point in their life will be eligible to take the survey. A parallel multiple mediation model will examine multiple pathways of influence between emotional neglect and romantic relationship satisfaction. Data analysis used for RQ1 and RQ2 will be Pearson’s r for zero-ordered correlations, and multiple regression analysis will be used for RQ3 and RQ4.  
            Keywords: childhood emotional neglect, romantic relationships, God-image, image of God, attachment, adverse childhood experiences, religion