Using adult attachment theory to differentiate adult children's internal working models of later life filial relationships

During the past fifty years, research based on attachment theory has found that when relational partners' attachment systems are activated, significant differences emerge between the ways individuals respond to each other. These different attachment styles are related to the ways individuals characterise and conceptualise close relationships generally, referred to as ‘internal representations’. Internal representations of close relationships depend heavily upon whether individuals have a secure or insecure attachment style. Until recently, most attachment-based research has focused either on the parent–child relationship during infancy, or on adult romantic relationships. Attachment researchers are now turning their attention to the parent–‘child’ relationship during the later stages of life. Later life filial relationships are of intrinsic interest to attachment researchers because they concern the same adults who were instrumental in forming the attachment organisation of the young child. This study considers filial attachments from the perspective of the adult ‘child’. Twenty-four participants were selected using the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) to include equal numbers of the three main attachment organisations. Six robust factors emerged, accounting for 71% of the variation. Confident Resolution and Resolved Yearning incorporated the secure attachment organisation. Distant Irritation and Dutiful Loyalty captured the insecure-avoidant style, with Unresolved Yearning and Entangled Resentment comprising insecure-ambivalent individuals.     

Is There a Primary Mom? Parental Perceptions of Attachment Bond Hierarchies Within Lesbian Adoptive Families

Basic tenets of attachment theory were evaluated in a qualitative study of 15 lesbian couples with internationally adopted children, focusing on parental perceptions of a primary mother-child attachment within the families. Interviews with 30 mothers examined variables affecting the hierarchy of parenting bonds, including division of labor, time with the child, and parental legal status. All children developed attachments to both mothers, but 12 of the 15 had primary bonds to one mother despite shared parenting and division of labor between the partners. Quality of maternal caretaking was a salient contributing factor; no significant relationship existed between primary parenting and parental legal status.     

Relationships between maternal adult attachment security, child perceptions of maternal support, and maternal perceptions of child responses to sexual abuse

This study assessed the relationships between maternal adult attachment style, children's perceptions of maternal support following disclosure of sexual abuse, and maternal perceptions of children's behavioral and emotional responses to sexual abuse among African-American child sexual abuse victims aged 4 to 12 (n=96) and a comparison group of non-abused subjects (n=100). Mothers with insecure attachment styles reported significantly higher rates of internalizing behaviors in their sexually abused children than did securely attached mothers. Among mothers of non-abused children, those with insecure adult attachment styles reported significantly higher rates of externalizing behaviors shown by their children in comparison with mothers with a secure adult attachment style. Mothers with insecure adult attachment styles also reported higher rates of overall behavior problems in their non-abused children that approached statistical significance. Sexually abused children's perceptions of maternal support were not related to maternal attachment style nor to child functioning. Contrary to our prediction, mothers of sexually abused children did not show lower rates of secure attachments when compared to mothers of non-sexually abused children. Our findings indicate that fostering parent- child attachment is important in order to decrease the risk for behavior problems and symptomatology in sexually abused children.     

Working with neglected children and their families

Child neglect has proved a particularly difficult area for social work to address. In the first part of the paper a number of reasons for this are discussed. We go on to suggest that chronic child neglect characteristically involves the breakdown or absence of a relationship of care. Therefore, the social work response needs to include a focus on the relationship difficulties between parent and child which manifest as either an unwillingness or inability on the part of the primary carer to offer reliable, adequate care, and on broader relationship difficulties within the family. In arguing for an approach that pays attention to the intra-personal and relational dynamics of neglect, we draw specifically on attachment theory and consider how Ainsworth's (1978) typology of attachment patterns can shed light on parenting styles and patterns of family functioning associated with chronic neglect. We use the concept of the 'internal working model' to develop an understanding of the ways in which family members understand and live out their relationships—with each other and with the worker. We conclude by suggesting that this relational approach requires an ability on the part of the social worker to work both with and within relationships, and look at the contribution that a critically informed relationship-based approach can make to work with families where child neglect occurs.     

Child Care as a Relational Context for Early Development: Research in Neurobiology and Emerging Roles for Social Work

The quality of child care in the United States is an important social problem, particularly for economically vulnerable families. This is highlighted by multidisciplinary research on the importance of early caregiving as a determinant of child health and wellbeing. This article examines center-based child care as an important relational and developmental context for infants and young children. Through an integration of psychosocial studies and emerging research in the cognitive neurosciences, this paper describes how developmental research on early emotional development can be utilized to inform our understanding of child care as a critical social and interpersonal context for infants and young children. In particular, this paper examines research on early interpersonal experience as a determinant of the capacity for affect regulation. Focusing on the application of theory to practice, this paper discusses the relevance of this research to informed direct practice, advocacy and program development.     

WHERE RELATIONAL THEORY AND ATTACHMENT THEORY INTERSECT: A REAL RELATIONSHIP AND A REAL ATTACHMENT

This paper demonstrates the importance of understanding the client’s early attachment patterns and of promoting a real attachment in the therapeutic dyad. A review of relational theory reinforces current acceptance of therapist self-disclosure as a tool for engaging difficult clients. Additionally, therapists can identify clients’ early attachment experiences and promote growth in fragile clients by allowing them judicious access to their inner world, thereby encouraging the formation of a real attachment. Case examples illustrate how to identify early attachment patterns and one therapist’s creative use of self in developing real, therapeutic attachments with her clients.     

The wellbeing of foster children and their relationship with foster parents and biological parents: a child’s perspective

Most Dutch foster children live permanently in foster families. It is often assumed that foster children have ambivalent loyalties and attachments to their birth parents and foster parents and are torn between the two. In this study 59 children between 10 and 18 years placed in long term foster care completed standardised questionnaires on the relationship with their parents respectively foster parents and their wellbeing. Results show that, on average, foster children have positive feelings of loyalty and attachment towards both their foster parents and biological parents. However, their wellbeing appeared mainly related with stronger attachment representations towards their foster parents. This study found no indications for a competing position of biological parents and foster parents from the perspective of the child. Nevertheless, foster children who see their foster and biological parents as more vulnerable or experience stronger normative boundaries, feel worse compared to children who experience this feelings less.     

Sustaining People Right Through Their Lives: Interview With Graham Martin

In this interview Graham Martin reflects on his long career in child and adolescent mental health. He shares his formative experiences with some of the pioneers in the field of attachment theory and the many varied ways that this information has influenced his work in the provision of care to children in hospital, health promotion, understanding the distress of suicidal youth, and his ongoing therapeutic work with families.     

Building a Secure Base: Treatment of a Child with Disorganized Attachment

Treatment strategies for children with disorganized attachments are not well established. This population exhibits a large array of difficulties in social relationships and self-regulation, as well as numerous other co-morbid conditions. As such, treatment of children with attachment problems is complex and requires a multi-faceted approach. This paper explores current research and theories about disorganized attachment and then examines how that research helped shape the treatment of an 8 year-old boy.     

An Attachment Primer for Couple Therapists: Research and Clinical Implications

According to attachment theory, humans are relational beings and even a child's earliest experiences with caregivers have a profound effect on emotional development and an overall approach to relationships. With increasing regularity, couple therapy has utilized attachment language as a conceptual tool, but more work is needed to understand the full clinical implications of attachment theory. These include understanding the intergenerational nature of attachment and adapting the delivery, timing, and pace of interventions to client attachment strategies. In this article, we summarize the origins of attachment theory, its measurement, the role of attachment in couple relationships, attachment stability and change, and ways that attachment informs therapy process and intervention. We hope that this article will provide an impetus for couple therapists to expand their conceptualization and use of attachment in their clinical work and for couple researchers to conduct more clinically relevant, attachment‐oriented process research.     

Socioeconomic Strain,Family Ties,and Adolescent Health in a Rural Northeastern County

In adolescence, vital sources of support come from family relationships; however, research that considers the health‐related impact of ties to both parents and siblings is sparse, and the utility of such ties among at‐risk teens is not well understood. Here we use two waves of panel data from the population of 8th and 12th grade students in a geographically isolated, rural, northeastern U.S. county to assess whether socioeconomic status (SES) moderates the effects of parental and sibling attachments on three indicators of adolescent health: obesity, depression, and problem substance use. Our findings indicate that, net of stressful life events, prior health, and sociodemographic controls, increases in parental and sibling attachment correspond with reduced odds of obesity for low‐SES adolescents, reduced odds of depression for high‐SES adolescents, and reduced odds of problem substance use for low‐SES adolescents. Results suggest also that sibling and maternal ties are more influential than paternal ties, at least with regard to the outcomes considered. Overall, the findings highlight the value of strong family ties for the physical, psychological, and behavioral health of socioeconomically strained rural teens, and reveal the explanatory potential of both sibling and parental ties for adolescent health.     

Effects of Parental Divorce on God Image Among Young Adults at a Christian University

We used path analysis to investigate the impact of parental divorce on God image, mediated by father–child and mother–child attachments, among 178 college students at a Christian university. Findings revealed that parental divorce negatively impacts father–child attachment; however, father–child attachment does not impact God image. Instead, the quality of mother–child attachment, which does not seem to be influenced by parental divorce, best predicts the development of a healthy God image. Thus, preliminary findings elucidated that parental divorce undermines the quality of attachment between father and child but not mother and child, and mother–child attachment ultimately influences God image. Further research is needed to replicate and generalize these preliminary findings.     

西方儿童虐待成因的发展生态模型理论研究述评

发展生态模型是西方儿童虐待成因研究的重要理论框架,但国内对此缺少系统性介绍。该理论认为,儿童虐待产生自互动个体与嵌套生态系统层面间的交互影响,它主要以生态系统理论为理论基础,并以“生态整合模型”和“生态交互模型”为代表性理论模型。该理论具有重要的方法论意义,它可促使研究者突破单因素变量研究的窠臼,并转向多因素共构视角去理解儿童虐待成因;同时,也为儿童虐待治理实践提供了多因素和多层次的系统干预视角。该理论的出现丰富了儿童虐待研究者的理论想象力,可为我国家庭、学校等场域的儿童虐待和儿童保护研究和干预提供启示。     

Lesbian,gay, bisexual,and transgender families and health

Research consistently demonstrates that family relationships are key determinants of health, but most research on health and families focuses on a heterosexual and cisgender context. Sexual and gender identities often are overlooked or erased in family and health research. We present an overview of the current state of research on LGBT families and health, using a life course approach and pointing to the ways that LGBT people's experiences of families occur within a broader social structural context, with implications for their health and the health of their family members. We focus on parenthood, parent–child ties, intimate relationships, and caregiving. We also identify two theoretical obstacles for studies of LGBT families and health as well as important research areas for moving forward, such as the inclusion of non‐binary and queer identities in our studies of family and health. Incorporation of LGBT and other queer families and family forms into our health research interrogates assumptions within family and health research and offers insight into how to move the field forward.     

Relational Perceptions in Mother-Daughter Attachments

ABSTRACT

Two-hundred-twenty-one matched pairs of post-adolescent females (Mean age = 20.2) and their mothers (Mean age = 46.5) participated in a study to examine the relational perceptions of mother-daughter attachments by evaluating their perceptions of reported autonomy, intimacy, conflict, self-esteem and quality of relationship. Results indicated that mothers and daughters differed significantly on one measure of autonomy (Family of Origin Scale) and conflict (Mother-Daughter Conflict Scale). No differences between mothers and daughters were found for measures of attachment, intimacy and self-esteem. Findings suggest close attachments yet differences reflective of individuation.     

Best Practice for Adolescent Prenatal Care: Application of an Attachment Theory Perspective to Enhance Prenatal Care and Diminish Birth Risks

The purpose of this article is to present a best practice model for adolescent prenatal care. Increasing rates of unplanned pregnancies coupled with the highest rates of all age groups with inadequate prenatal care make this population especially vulnerable to birth risks and maternal–infant relational problems. While there is much literature on individual level variables that affect prenatal care adherence such as age, poverty, low self-esteem, and transportation, there is little practice based research knowledge on diminishing potential birth risks by repairing and building the maternal–infant (fetus) relationship prior to the actual birth of the child. Using findings from the author’s former study, practitioner experience, and a review of evidence based literature, the article presents an innovative attachment theory based prenatal care model for social work practitioners and other health care professionals working with pregnant adolescents.     

The Use of Sandtray Therapy With Adoptive Families

Providing mental health services to adoptive families is an increasing need, and research indicates that many mental health professionals are not proficient in issues commonly affecting adoptive families. Research shows that adopted children exhibit more emotional, behavioral, and social struggles than non-adopted children, often as the result of abuse and neglect in early life. Primarily, though, the needs in adoptive families are relational and identified as needing focus on family dynamics, attachment styles, and trauma exposure. This article suggests using sandtray therapy as a therapeutic method that is trauma-informed, attachment-friendly, and supportive of adoptive families.     

Mental Health Risks to Infants and Toddlers in Foster Care

This paper describes mental health risks to the birth-to-three foster care population. The paper describes risks of a relational and contextual nature. Relational risk factors, which have been previously identified by foster care researchers and clinicians, include the following: 1. Poor attachment signaling by foster infants and toddlers; 2. Discomfort with infant and toddler dependency by some foster parents; and 3. Regulatory problems of foster infants and toddlers. Contextual risk factors include the following: 1. Lack of coordinated and coherent efforts to help foster infants and toddlers and; 2. Lack of support for the parent–child relationship during placement. A case example and discussion is offered to illustrate these risks.     

Preface to the Special Issue on Child and Adolescent Attachment

The implications of John Bowlby’s attachment theory resound through the mental health community. While we know now that much of what Bowlby posited was true, we are still discovering the value of such findings for our clinical work with children and adolescents. Our special issue in Clinical Social Work Journal explores how attachment theory is being used in clinical settings throughout the country. It presents articles relevant to work with infants and toddlers, children and adolescents and families. How can we translate what we know about attachment theory and research into practice? Our special issue authors have attempted to answer this question.     

Attachment and the Repetition of Trauma: A Case Study of Attachment‐Based Crisis Intervention

This article explores the difficult case of a 16‐year‐old who was causing a great deal of anxiety by presenting with dramatic behaviour, such as leaping off buildings, swallowing needles and poisons, and jumping in front of cars. The case study explores a six‐month period of crisis intervention, which focused on the unique kind of attachment relationship that existed between the teenager and his mother. The mother had experienced recurrent traumatisation prior to his birth, and it was found that the aftereffects of this traumatisation must have influenced the teenager's early attachment experiences and subsequent development. The attachment‐based therapy treated the crises as primarily ‘relational crises’. The therapy involved investigating and sharing formulations about their attachment history, cultivating an insight into the relational or dynamic determinants of the teenager's crises. Broader suggestions are made concerning the application of attachment theory to different approaches in family therapy, as well as to our understanding of phenomena such as transgenerational traumatisation.