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PubMed2006

Infant-mother attachment classification: risk and protection in relation to changing maternal caregiving quality.

The relations between early infant-mother attachment and children's social competence and behavior problems during the preschool and early school-age period were examined in more than 1,000 children under conditions of decreasing, stable, and increasing maternal parenting quality. Infants' Strange Situation attachment classifications predicted mothers' reports of children's social competence and teachers' reports of externalizing and internalizing behaviors from preschool age through 1st grade. These relations appeared to be mediated by parenting quality; main effects of attachment classification disappeared when effects of parenting quality were controlled. Interactions were also observed. For example, when parenting quality improved over time, teachers rated children with insecure infant-mother attachments lower on externalizing behaviors; when parenting quality decreased, teachers rated insecure children higher on externalizing behaviors. In contrast, children classified as securely attached in infancy did not appear to be affected by declining or improving parenting quality.

Caregivers↗

PubMed1998

The effect of infant colic on maternal self-perceptions and mother-infant attachment.

Mothers of infants who developed colic were compared with mothers of non-colic infants on their perceptions of parenting self-efficacy, and separation anxiety as well as their attachment relationship with their infants. Colic was identified prospectively through telephone contacts with mothers. Questionnaires on self-efficacy and separation anxiety were completed when infants were 5 months of age. At 18 months of age mothers and infants (colic and non-colic) participated in a laboratory situation to measure attachment. Results revealed that mothers of colic infants reported feeling less competent as mothers. In addition, while mothers of colicky infants tended to have more separation anxiety than mothers of non-colic infants, they felt that these separations did not have a negative effect on their child. Finally, no differences were revealed for attachment classifications between colic and non-colic infants at 18 months.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Impact of attachment styles on dream recall and dream content: a test of the attachment hypothesis of REM sleep.

We tested the hypothesis (McNamara 1996; Zborowski and McNamara 1998) that dream recall and dream content would pattern with interpersonal attachment styles. In study I, college student volunteers were assessed on measures of attachment, dream recall, dream content and other psychologic measures. Results showed that participants who were classified as 'high' on an 'insecure attachment' scale were significantly more likely to (a) report a dream, (b) dream 'frequently', and (c) evidence more intense images that contextualize strong emotions in their dreams as compared with participants who scored low on the insecure attachment scale. In study II, 76 community dwelling elderly volunteers completed measures of attachment, and dream recall. Participants whose attachment style was classified as 'preoccupied' were significantly more likely to report a dream and to report dreams with higher mean number of words per dream as compared with participants classified as 'securely' attached or as 'avoidant' or as 'dismissing.' Dream recall was lowest for the avoidant subjects and highest for the preoccupied subjects. These data support the view that rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and/or dreaming function, in part, to promote attachment.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The importance of shared environment in mother-infant attachment security: a behavioral genetic study.

In a sample of 157 monozygotic and dizygotic twins, genetic and environmental influences on infant attachment and temperament were quantified. Only unique environmental or error components could explain the variance in disorganized versus organized attachment as assessed in the Ainsworth Strange Situation Procedure. For secure versus nonsecure attachment, 52% of the variance in attachment security was explained by shared environment, and 48% of the variance was explained by unique environmental factors and measurement error. The role of genetic factors in attachment disorganization and attachment security was negligible. Genetic factors explained 77% of the variance in temperamental reactivity, and unique environmental factors and measurement error explained 23%. Differences in temperamental reactivity were not associated with attachment concordance.

Female↗

PubMed2000

Controversial attachments: the indirect treatment of fostered and adopted children via Parent Co-Therapy.

Fostered and adopted children often show a large array of psychosocial problems and are conceptualized as having attachment disorders. It can be necessary to engage such children in direct mental health treatment, in addition to interventions set up to deal with their problems through agencies such as Education and Social Services. In order to protect children from a multitude of treating professionals, thereby potentially further weakening the emerging parental attachments, a model is proposed of indirect treatment of children, with the adoptive parents as co-therapists. This elevates the status of parents and is controversial in child mental health work as it challenges traditional hierarchies. We refer to this model, based on a single case study, as Parent Co-Therapy (PCT). It is proposed that this may be a suitable treatment model for fostered and adopted children, particularly in the early years of placement. The model has the potential to strengthen the children's attachments to the parents and vice versa, with a concomitant reduction in symptomatology.

Adoption↗

PubMed2000

Intrusive caregiving and quality of attachment in prenatally drug-exposed toddlers and their primary caregivers.

The relation between caregiver intrusiveness and the quality of attachment was tested among 51 prenatally drug-exposed toddlers and their primary caregivers. Biological mothers and kinship/foster caregivers neither differed as to caregiver intrusiveness nor as to their toddlers' attachment security and attachment organization. Insecure and disorganized/disoriented attachments were found to be more prevalent in this sample than in normal samples. In keeping with recent findings in non-drug-abusing samples (Isabella & Belsky, 1991; Lyons-Ruth, Repacholi, McLeod, & Silva, 1991), more caregivers of toddlers with avoidant or disorganized/disoriented attachments were found to be intrusive than caregivers of toddlers with secure or resistant attachments.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

The concept of coherence in attachment interviews: comparing attachment experts, linguists, and non-experts.

Coherence is a central construct in attachment interviews. Nevertheless, the concept has never been the main focus of a study in the attachment field. The present study examined whether coherence in attachment interviews is defined differently by experts trained in attachment theory, by linguists, and by non-experts. The 72-item Coherence Q-sort (CQS) was used to determine the profile of a prototypical coherent interview. Results indicated that attachment experts could be reliably distinguished from the (combined) other groups: attachment experts emphasized quality and manner more than all other groups, linguists emphasized quantity and relevance more than attachment experts, and higher educated non-experts valued relevance more than attachment experts. Defining coherence in attachment interviews is thus more than just applying Grice's linguistic maxims; expertise in attachment theory is critical for defining interview coherence. Consequences for the coding of the AAI by non-attachment experts, as well as computer coding (im)possibilities are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Structure and functions of internal working models of attachment and their role for emotion regulation.

The concept of organization in the service of adaptation has been applied to attachment theory (Sroufe & Waters, 1977) as well as to a variety of life sciences (Ryan, Kuhi & Deci, 1997). Internal working models (IWMs) are postulated as providing organizing structure to the attachment behavior system controlling attachment behaviors toward caregivers and, with increasing age, autonomous individual adaptation. While many theoretical specifications have been suggested on that topic (e.g. Bretherton, 1987, 1990; Bretherton & Munholland, 1999; Main, Kaplan & Cassidy, 1985; Sroufe & Fleeson, 1986), empirical studies focusing directly on the structure or functions of internal working models are rare. Knowledge about the structure and functioning of IWMs could add to the understanding of the developmental influences of the attachment organization across the life-span. In this paper two topics will be addressed shortly and related to an empirical investigation concerning the relationship between attachment representations during late adolescence and emotion regulation patterns: (1) structure and functions of IWMs in terms of information-processing and emotion and behavior regulation; and (2) the transfer from IWMs of self-with-attachment figures to adaptive personality structures based on autonomous self-regulation.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Attachment for infants in foster care: the role of caregiver state of mind.

The concordance between foster mothers' attachment state of mind and foster infants' attachment quality was examined for 50 foster mother-infant dyads. Babies had been placed into the care of their foster mothers between birth and 20 months of age. Attachment quality was assessed between 12 and 24 months of age, at least 3 months after the infants' placement into foster care. The two-way correspondence between maternal state of mind and infant attachment quality was 72%, kappa = .43, similar to the level seen among biologically intact mother-infant dyads. Contrary to expectations, age at placement was not related to attachment quality. Rather, concordance between maternal state of mind and infant attachment was seen for relatively late-placed babies, as well as early placed babies. These findings have two major implications. First, following a disruption in care during the first year and a half of life, babies appear capable of organizing their behavior around the availability of new caregivers. Second, these data argue for a nongenetic mechanism for the intergenerational transmission of attachment.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

Adult attachment and the perception of emotional expressions: probing the hyperactivating strategies underlying anxious attachment.

According to adult attachment theory, individual differences in attachment-related anxiety reflect variation in individuals' vigilance to cues relevant to appraising and monitoring the availability and responsiveness of significant others. To investigate this assumption, the authors adopted a morph movie paradigm in which participants were shown movies of faces in which an emotional facial expression changed gradually to a neutral one (Study 1) or a neutral expression changed to an emotional one (Studies 2-4). Participants were asked to judge the point at which the emotional expression had disappeared or emerged, respectively. Individuals who were highly anxious with respect to attachment were more likely to perceive the offset (Study 1) as well as the onset (Studies 2 and 3) of the facial expressions of emotion earlier than other people. Moreover, this heightened state of vigilance may have led to poorer accuracy in judging facial expressions of emotion (Study 3), an effect that was reversed when anxious individuals were required to watch the movies for the same length of time as less anxious participants (Study 4). The results indicate that variation in attachment anxiety reflects, in part, differences in vigilance to cues of social and emotional significance.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Anxiety as a potential factor affecting maternal attachment.

Many factors may influence the initial mother-infant interactions. This exploratory study investigated the impact of one factor, anxiety, on maternal attachment in 30 married primigravidas. Observations of mother-infant interactions and scores from the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale were used. Results indicated that highly anxious mothers had low attachment scores. Mothers with high attachment scores had low anxiety ratings. In addition, affectionate behaviors were found to decrease as caretaking behaviors increased.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Attachment behaviors, depression, and anxiety in nonoffending mothers of child sexual abuse victims.

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychological well-being and attachment behavior of nonoffending mothers of child sexual abuse victims (CSAVs). This topic is significant because it is the mothers who most often provide support for young child victims. Two sets of data on maternal depression, state and trait anxiety, and Ainsworth's maternal attachment behaviors were analyzed. First, 38 mothers of CSAVs were compared based on the presence or absence of maternal history of abuse. Second, from the original 38 mothers of CSAVs, 27 mothers were compared to a matched group of mothers of nonabused children. Children in both data sets were 6 to 48 months. In the first data set, there were no significant differences in depression, anxiety, and attachment behaviors based on mothers' personal history of abuse. However, in the second data set, mothers of CSAVs had heightened levels of depression and anxiety and diminished maternal attachment behaviors.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Neonatal intensive care: communication and attachment.

Birth has traditionally been recognized as a family-centred event where immediate exposure to the infant occurs and where the family begins, through direct contact, touch and voice, to form an attachment to the infant. In high-risk pregnancy and delivery, medical and technological advances distance the family from the birth event. This article describes some aspects of a research project with identified factors that facilitate and hinder family and mother attachment to the infant during periods of separation subsequent to premature delivery or other problems which require management in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The project was exploratory. It involved observation of care, participation in care, individual unstructured interviews, focus group interviews and also use of Leske's (1986, 1991a,b) critical care family needs inventory, which was modified and responded to by family members (n = 109) in an attempt to quantify and validate their needs. Six constructs were derived from the inventory and then ranked by mothers (n = 100). The findings from this process were triangulated to observation and interview data in order to confirm factors that facilitate and hinder the process of attachment during family and mother-infant separation. The results of the study imply that when the family and mother are supported by an individualized approach to care and appropriate communication is used, attachment can be facilitated.

Anxiety, Separation↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Importance of attachment in the development of psychism].

John Bowlby refers to attachment as the special affect and trust bond that a child establishes with other emotionally significant people, who constitute a source of security and protection. The main figure of attachment during childhood is generally the person who fulfills the maternal function (primary caregiver), although it is also established with the father, brothers/sisters, grandparents, and others. The approaching behavior could be activated by different stimuli which depends on each person and his/her developing stage. This bond is developed according to experiences and relationships in the first years of life - experiences stored in mental representations (internal working models), which influence the individual's psychic organization. Different instruments allow to make evident the different types of attachment bonds and to establish a correlation between parents and children. The Attachment makes up a valid theoretical and methodological model for the investigation, prevention and treatment in mental health.

Anxiety, Separation↗

PubMed1982

[Passage to suicidal acts in schizophrenias].

The suicide attempts by precipitation of schizophrenics constitute the matter for an Analysis of acting-out. It concerns the impulsive behaviour from which basic emotion takes certain traits from hostility. The setting of this acting-out is tied to a release from affective and communicative coordination system implicated by the paradoxical attachment. The significativity of acting-out is both a mortal escape from incestuous or fusional rapprochement and the symbolic realization of this rapprochement.

Acting Out↗

PubMed1994

[Attachment, a theory to rediscover and complete].

Thirty five years after the publication of Bowlby's founding articles (1957 and 1958), what relevance might the theory of attachment still have for the conceptual and methodological apparatus used by the psychologists who study emotional development of the young? That question is addressed throughout this article through a historic-critical review and leads to formulating two tentative responses. In the first part are shortly presented the contributions which have brought precisions, supported and prolonged the leader's propositions. In the second part we attempt to partially reconceptualize the process and behavior of attachment, following the recent suggestions of Bowlby and Ainsworth. Two cases of parent-infant interactions serve as empirical illustrations for this new perspective.

Humans↗

PubMed1994

Adaptive function of depression: psychotherapeutic implications.

Using the frameworks of attachment and social hierarchy theories, strategies seen in depression and in normal life are better understood. A hierarchial encounter elicits the "Involuntary Subordinate Strategy" ("ISS") in the loser, which terminates the "ISS" and brings the encounter to an end. These are psychophysiological mechanisms deeply rooted in our phylogenetic ancestry. Loss of a love object also elicits ineffective anger or rage which may, in turn, trigger the ISS. A prolonged intense ISS manifests in depression. Factors are examined that prevent "acceptance" of losing, thereby contributing to an escalation of the ISS and culminating in depressive illness. Psychotherapeutic implications include cognitive restructuring to enable the patient to explore options that might turn off the ISS such as "acceptance" (without making negative self-evaluations), changing unrealistic ideals and aspirations, leaving the scene, or becoming more self-assertive. Case examples are given to illustrate these interventions.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Predicting psychological mindedness from personality style and attachment security.

The aim of this study was to increase the construct validity of the Psychological Mindedness Scale (PM Scale) by investigating its relationship to well-established measures of personality style (NEO Five-Factor Inventory) and attachment security (Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment). Personality and attachment variables functioned as differential predictors of psychological mindedness (PM). Openness to Experience emerged as the best predictor of PM, followed by Extraversion, Neuroticism (inversely related to PM), and Attachment to Peers. Neither Attachment to Mother nor Attachment to Father predicted PM. The results of this study indicate that PM is related positively to healthy, rather than pathological, personal and interpersonal constructs.

Adult↗