Background: Animal research indicates that the neural substrates of emotion regulation may be persistently altered by early environmental exposures. If similar processes operate in human development then this is significant, as the capacity to regulate emotional states is fundamental to human adaptation. Methods: We utilised a 22-year longitudinal…

Background: Twin studies consistently point to limited genetic influence on attachment security in the infancy period, but no study has examined whether this remains the case in later development. This study presents the findings from a twin study examining the relative importance of genetic and environmental influences on attachment in…

Background: Longitudinal research has demonstrated that individual differences in attachment security show only modest continuity from infancy to adulthood. Recent findings based on retrospective reports suggest that individuals' genetic variation may moderate the developmental associations between early attachment-relevant relationship…

Background: Implications of early attachment have been extensively studied, but little is known about its long-term indirect sequelae, where early security organization moderates future parent-child relationships, serving as a catalyst for adaptive and maladaptive processes. Two longitudinal multi-trait multi-method studies examined whether early…

Background: Empirical studies demonstrate that maternal sensitivity is associated with attachment security in infancy, while maternal frightening/frightened behavior is related to attachment disorganization. However, attachment disorganization is also predicted by individual dispositions in infancy. Indeed, recent studies indicate a link between…

Background: A broad capacity for deliberate self-regulation plays a key role in emotion regulation. This longitudinal investigation from infancy to preschool age examines genotype by environment (G x E) interaction in the development of self-regulation, using molecular measures of children's genotypes and observed measures of the quality of early…

Background: Attachment theory's original formulation was substantially driven by Bowlby's (1969/1982) quest for a meaningful model of the development of psychopathology. Bowlby posited that aberrant experiences of parenting increase the child's risk of psychopathological outcomes, and that these risks are mediated by the quality of the attachment…

Background: Empirical studies have revealed a significant, but modest association between maternal depression and insecure mother-child attachment. Across studies, however, a substantial number of mothers with depression are able to provide a sensitive caretaking environment for their children. This paper aimed to explore whether a mother's own…