Practicing Money Management Makes Things Better: Healthy Financial Behaviors Attenuates Associations among Insecure Attachment, Economic Abuse Victimization, and Hopelessness

Economic abuse, a form of intimate partner violence (IPV), is prevalent and harmful but often difficult to detect. Chinese young adults (ages 18–35) in cohabiting relationships represent a substantial yet under-researched group at a relatively high risk of economic abuse. To enhance understanding of the potential predictors and outcomes of economic abuse in this population, we examined young adults' developmental tasks of exploring finances and romance while planning their ideal future lives. Guided by attachment theory, economic empowerment, and the Vulnerability-Stress-Adaptation (VSA) model, we investigated (1) how romantic attachment orientations and financial behaviors interact in their association with economic abuse and (2) how economic abuse is associated with hopelessness among a sample of Chinese young adults in cohabiting relationships. We used cross-sectional survey data from 445 young adults in Mainland China and employed structural equation modeling to assess our research questions. We found that young adults with avoidant or anxious attachment styles were more likely to experience economic abuse, which was, in turn, associated with higher levels of hopelessness. Additionally, healthy financial behaviors mitigated the association between attachment anxiety and avoidance, economic abuse, and hopelessness. Collectively, our findings advance the understanding of the potential predictors and consequences of economic abuse. They also underscore the importance of financial education in reducing economic abuse and its negative outcomes among Chinese young adults in cohabiting relationships.