Investigates two questions of interest to persons who treat children with psychological difficulties: (1) What is attachment theory? and (2) Does it have relevance when working with disturbed children and their families? (Author/DB)

In order to examine whether the visual picture of the mother would, by itself, encourage toddlers to play in an unfamiliar situation, the effects of films of mothers were compared to the actual presence of the mothers, and to films of unfamiliar women. (CM)

Attachment behaviors were compared for groups of mother/deaf preschool child dyads where only oral communication was used and where total communication was used. Results showed that very few of the children were distressed by separation from their mothers. Further, the children's level of communicative competence was shown to be associated with…

This article examines the view of infants as passive recipients of social stimulation. It is argued that progress in the understanding of sociopersonality development will be achieved only when the competence of infants and the multidimensionality of the infant social world are acknowledged. (MS)

Examined the relationship between infants' attachment quality and attention and memory at 3.5 years. Found that insecure/avoidant and insecure/ambivalent children looked away from mother-child drawings more than secure children. Secure children better recalled stories in which mothers responded sensitively than did insecure/avoidant children, and…

Examines the relationship between family characteristics and adolescent deviant behaviors, such as delinquency and drug use. Results indicate a significant direct relationship between family attachment and each of the deviant behaviors, whereas family structure was not significantly related to deviant behavior. Family attachment had a direct…

Investigates whether autonomy and parental attachment in a diverse group of undergraduate women (N=325) varied by class year, as suggested by the Chickering model. Results revealed a pattern of autonomy development that differed from the model's. Although student autonomy increased with class year, students displayed no decreased attachment to…

Histories of child neglect or child physical abuse were correlated with psychological functioning in 236 male and 276 female undergraduates. Childhood neglect was more predictive of psychological problems and anxious attachment styles than was physical abuse. Results suggest neglect and physical abuse are potentially separate moderators of…

This study applied Meehl's taxometric techniques for distinguishing latent types from late continua to Strange Situation data on 1,139 fifteen-month-olds from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care. Results indicated that variation in attachment patterns was largely continuous, not categorical. Implications of dimensional models for individual…

Two studies examined the influence of maternal discourse style and security of attachment on preschoolers' emotion understanding. Findings indicated that neither predicted 3-year-olds' emotion understanding. Secure attachment predicted higher emotion understanding among 5-year-olds, especially in the context of maternal use of elaborative…

Examined the feelings of mothers when temporarily leaving their infants--who were perceived to cry excessively--to other caretakers. Found through interviews that the mothers were anxious when separated from the infant, had an intensive perception of the infant's crying, and had difficulty sharing responsibility for the infant. (EV)

Examined incidence and intensity of separation anxiety at preschool entry. Found that the majority of 3- and 4-year-olds were rated as having relatively low levels of age-appropriate anxiety and fears. Four-year-olds were rated more fearful than 3-year-olds. Prior separation experience, sex, age, and general anxiety were related to separation…

Investigates two constructs integral to adolescent development, continuing parental attachment and social support, to assess whether the constructs are differentially related to indices of adjustment following a romantic relationship breakup. As hypothesized, hierarchical regression analyses showed that current attachment levels were related to…

Studied variability in mother-child attachment security among high-risk families living in poverty. Maternal sensitivity and the presence of appropriate play materials were assessed. Findings indicated that maternal, child, and contextual variables were significantly associated with attachment security. Furthermore, greater cumulative assets were…

Recent research recognizes the importance of interpersonal relationships between children and teachers. Thirty-five white, female teachers completed questionnaires on their childhood attachment experiences and current relationships with individuals in their classroom. Teachers' childhood relationship experiences were found to affect their…