Data showed that the majority of low-birth-weight twins and singletons had secure attachments, indicating that the propensity to form a secure attachment is a very robust phenomenon. Twinship did not affect infants' attachment classification. Contrary to the prediction that mothers in the insecure group would consistently obtain lowest ratings,…

No differences were found in mother-infant attachment between nonadopted and intraracial adopted subjects or between intraracial and interracial adopted subjects. Suggests that the higher incidence of psychological problems found among adoptees in middle childhood and adolescence cannot be explained in terms of insecure attachment relationships…

Temperament and attachment, as defined by Bowlby and his followers, are fundamentally different constructs, and research guided by the attachment perspective cannot meaningfully be assimilated to the temperament construct. Qualitative aspects of relationships simply cannot be reduced to individual behavioral dimensions. (RH)

That a mother's affective illness may interfere with her ability to relate to her child in ways that promote a secure attachment is documented in these data. Depression decreased the likelihood of secure attachment between mother and child. Children of unipolar and bipolar depressed mothers had different patterns of attachment. (RH)

Customarily, several parent figures rear black infants. The effects of this practice on infant-parent attachments have not been studied even though they provide the chance to test the attachment theory contention that infants form a primary attachment when several attachment figures are available. To study this issue, 21 male and 16 female black…

Reports use of the strange situation procedure to explore the effects of Israeli kibbutz child-rearing practices on the development of infant-mother, infant-father, and infant-caretaker attachment. (Author/NH)

Part of a prospective longitudinal study examining factors that account for developmental outcomes for high-risk children, this investigation focused on how successful adaptation at 12 and 18 months is related to adaptation at 24 months, 42 months, and 4.5 to 5 years of age. Assessments at each age were designed to indicate how the child was…

Children's responses toward strangers, qualities of mother-child interaction, and maternal stresses were examined in 38 mother-child pairs, with children from single and two-parent families. Responses to female and male strangers were observed in a modified Strange Situation. Mother-child interaction was assessed with a modified version of…