The label Attachment Disorder (AD) is used as either a description of a child's presentation, or as a diagnostic category. It is unclear whether this label is intended to be identical with the DSM-IV Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) diagnostic category, or if it is a separate diagnosis based on Randolph's Questionnaire and the premises…

Responds to William Sears's article: "Attachment Parenting: A Style That Works" (PS 523 690). Claims that there are alternatives to "attachment parenting" based on the Montessori philosophy, pointing out that Sears's suggestion of sleeping with the baby and carrying the baby in a sling may easily become obstacles in the path of…

Prospective longitudinal study examined continuity in infants' experience to attachment representations at 18 years. Found that adults with dismissing representations had received less sensitive maternal care than adults with secure or preoccupied representations. Adverse life events through age 12, especially parental divorce, reduced likelihood…

These "letters for parents" offer information about becoming a parent and the characteristics of preschool children. The first letter focuses on the transition to parenthood, bonding and attachment, and the infant's temperament. The second letter describes 3-, 4-, and 5-year-olds and offers advice about practicing safety. (RH)

This document consists of a compilation of three separate 4-page brochures by the same authors: (1) understanding babies and toddlers; (2) understanding three to six-year olds; (3) disciplining preschoolers. The first brochure covers bonding and attachment, infant temperament, patterns of growth, and the characteristics of children during the…

Cites research studies suggesting the importance of early mother-infant, father-infant interaction, and gives several examples of the varied new approaches in hospitals and medical centers which encourage early prenatal contact both for normal and premature infants. (BR)

Focuses on definition of sensitivity, developmental changes in sensitivity, and clinical implications of attachment. Maintains that promptness, consistency, and appropriateness are the main components of sensitivity across parenting dimensions. Suggests that studying infant antecedents to attachment security is equally important to that of parent…

Reviews the major transitional object (TO) theories in terms of origin, development, and psychological meaning. Examines the validity of TO (intense, persistent attachments young children develop for blankets, soft toys, and bits of cloth) theory in light of current empirical knowledge of TO behavior. (HOD)

Maintains that the preceding studies extend a long line of research demonstrating the coherence of individual development in attachment security. Notes that the studies clarify that attachment security can be stable from infancy through early adulthood and that changes in security are meaningfully related to changes in the family environment.…

Suggests future directions for study of sensitivity and its impact on early psychosocial development: (1) renewed attention to growth of attachment in context of other developing features of the parent-child relationship; (2) factors that moderate impact of sensitivity on developing security; (3) origins of individual differences in sensitivity;…

Examined predictive relations between infant assessments and behavior problems at age 7 in a low-income sample. Found that disorganized infant attachment behavior and below average mental development at 18 months were associated with externalizing behavior at 7 years. Avoidant infant attachment behavior was associated with later internalizing…

Provided in this annual report, the 10th of a series, are the texts of four papers presented at a preconference workshop on new directions for infancy research. The papers focus on the middle European contribution to infancy research, main themes in European research on infant perception and cognition, an innovative therapeutic approach to…

Infants of depressed mothers who were visited at home outperformed infants of depressed mothers who received no intervention services by an average of 10 points on the Bayley Mental Scale and were twice as likely to be classified as securely attached. Unserved, high-risk infants showed a high rate of insecure-disorganized attachments. (RH)

Work in developmental psychiatry and psychology has increasingly focused on how internal representations of early experiences with primary figures of childhood affect relationship formation in later childhood and adulthood. Investigations of the reflective self function, which involves mental states in which individuals become the subject of their…

This study examined the relationship between varying patterns of maternal employment, the use of child care, and the infant's establishment of a reciprocal, responsive relationship with the mother. Parental and non-parental caregivers were located within a family system to examine attachment theory within an ecological framework. The subjects were…