Attempts to provide a plausible theory of music's evolutionary development. Speculates that music may have provided survival benefits by helping establish mother/infant bonds, by aiding in the acquisition of knowledge, by providing a unique way of knowing, and by playing important roles in social organization. (LS)

Studied interactions which are related to written language, attachment security, and emergent literacy between 45 mothers and their children, aged one-and-a-half to five-and-a-half years. Results suggest that mothers give reading instruction to small children by naming letters and well-known words which contain those letters. Mother-child…

Evaluated the enduring effectiveness of a skill-based training program to enhance maternal sensitivity toward infants between six and nine months of age. Found that more of the toddlers whose mothers participated in the intervention were securely attached than toddlers from the control group dyads. In the third year, evidence of sustained effects…

Presents the Maternal Behavior Q-Set, a 90-item assessment that describes a wide range of maternal behavior including interactive style, her sensitivity to her infant's state, feeding interactions, and the extent to which the home reflects the infant's needs. (HTH)

Examines the nature of mother-child bonding from the prenatal stage through early infancy, discussing how the mother's actions, even before birth, stimulate her child's senses. Explains the crucial role that physical contact, breastfeeding, and visual stimuli have on mother-child bonding in human and animal newborns. (MDM)

Families in individual-orientated Western society spend little time together and tend to focus on accomplishments rather than belonging. Proposes that human development is not an individual but a group process and that a nest of ongoing support during childhood encourages a sense of belonging. This support should include at least 10 minutes of…

Relations between maternal depression and attachment among 50 infant-mother and 54 preschooler-mother dyads were examined using several attachment measures. Attachment insecurity was found to be significantly associated with maternal depression among infants and preschoolers. Children without unitary, coherent attachment strategies tended to have…

Analyzes treasured possessions and their meanings in adolescence, including their relation to those treasured during early life and their relation to self-identity. Subjects were 14- to 18-year-old high school students (n=249). Results showed that males' most treasured possessions embodied enjoyment and instrumental meanings, whereas females'…

Examines ways in which individual differences in emotion regulation may be influenced by children's attachment experiences. It argues that individuals characterized by the flexible ability to accept and integrate both positive and negative emotions are generally securely attached, whereas individuals characterized by either limited or heightened…

Examined the stress vulnerability of infants with disorganized/disoriented attachment patterns by measuring salivatory cortisol levels in 19-month olds following the Ainsworth Strange Situation procedure. Indicates that infants' disorganized attachment behavior reflects a vulnerability to stressful stimulation, suggesting a model of stress…

Describes development of an instrument, the Client Attachment to Therapist Scale (CATS). CATS factors correlated in expected directions with survey measures of object relations, client-rated working alliance, social self-efficacy, and adult attachment. Cluster analysis revealed four types of client attachment. Discusses implications of attachment…

Examined association of adult attachment styles and Rusbult's investment model of relationships. Responses from 239 participants indicated those who are securely attached experience greater satisfaction, fewer costs, and greater commitment in their relationships than do other attachment groups. Other findings and implications for counseling were…

A study of 53 Japanese mothers and their young children who were temporarily living in the United States found that, when life stress was high, mothers reported less parenting stress if social support was adequate. The more satisfied mothers were with their support, the less secure was their children's attachment. (BC)

A total of 101 mothers from Montreal and Chicago used the Attachment Q-Sort to describe their two- or three-year-old children. Analyses indicated some group differences on derived item scales and criterion scores. Analyses accounting for maternal variables indicated that only the criterion score for attachment security differed across the groups.…

Surveyed 1,200 residents of rural North Carolina to examine the effects of gender on feelings of community attachment. Studied the relationship between emotional responses to the community and community attachment. The results, though inconclusive, indicate that community attachment has more importance in explaining women's response to questions…