1
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Bakkum L, Verhage ML, Schuengel C, Duschinsky R, Cornelisz I, van Klaveren C, van IJzendoorn MH, Raby KL, Roisman GI, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, Oosterman M, Madigan S, Fearon RMP, Behrens K. Exploring the meaning of unresolved loss and trauma in more than 1,000 Adult Attachment Interviews. Dev Psychopathol 2023; 35:587-603. [PMID: 35272727 PMCID: PMC10655611 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579421001735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Unresolved states of mind regarding experiences of loss/abuse (U/d) are identified through lapses in the monitoring of reasoning, discourse, and behavior surrounding loss/abuse in response to the Adult Attachment Interview. Although the coding system for U/d has been widely used for decades, the individual indicators of unresolved loss/abuse have not been validated independently of the development sample. This study examined the psychometric validity of U/d, using individual participant data from 1,009 parent-child dyads across 13 studies. A latent class analysis showed that subsets of commonly occurring U/d indicators could differentiate interviewees with or without unresolved loss/abuse. Predictive models suggested a psychometric model of U/d consisting of a combination of these common indicators, with disbelief and psychologically confused statements regarding loss being especially important indicators of U/d. This model weakly predicted infant disorganized attachment. Multilevel regression analysis showed no significant association between ratings of unresolved other trauma and infant disorganized attachment, over and above ratings of unresolved loss/abuse. Altogether, these findings suggest that the coding system of U/d may have been overfitted to the initial development sample. Directions for further articulation and optimization of U/d are provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lianne Bakkum
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Clinical Child and Family Studies and Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Marije L Verhage
- Department of Clinical Child and Family Studies and Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Carlo Schuengel
- Department of Clinical Child and Family Studies and Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Robbie Duschinsky
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Ilja Cornelisz
- Amsterdam Center for Learning Analytics, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Chris van Klaveren
- Amsterdam Center for Learning Analytics, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Marinus H van IJzendoorn
- Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - K Lee Raby
- Department of Psychology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Glenn I Roisman
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Marian J Bakermans-Kranenburg
- Department of Clinical Child and Family Studies and Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Mirjam Oosterman
- Department of Clinical Child and Family Studies and Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Sheri Madigan
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary and the Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - R M Pasco Fearon
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kazuko Behrens
- Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences, State University of New York Polytechnic Institute, Utica, NY, USA
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2
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Forslund T, Hammarlund M, Granqvist P. Admissibility of attachment theory, research and assessments in child custody decision-making? Yes and No! New Dir Child Adolesc Dev 2021; 2021:125-140. [PMID: 34962346 DOI: 10.1002/cad.20447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Attachment theory, research, and assessments have become increasingly applied to settle child custody cases. We discuss such applications in relation to admissibility criteria for scientific evidence and testimony proposed by Faigman et al. (2014). We argue that attachment theory and research can provide valid "framework evidence"; group-based attachment research has yielded general principles suitable as a frame of reference for pertinent court decisions. In particular, child custody decision-making should generally be guided by research indicating that children benefit from attachment networks. In contrast, assessments of attachment quality fall short of providing valid "diagnostic evidence"; information that a specific individual/dyad is a "true" instance of a general group-level principle. In particular, such assessments do not yield valid information about whether a particular caregiver has better caregiving skills than another caregiver and will better support child development. We conclude that attachment theory and research should be admissible for framework but not for diagnostic testimony.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tommie Forslund
- Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Pehr Granqvist
- Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
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3
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Forslund T, Granqvist P, IJzendoorn MHV, Sagi-Schwartz A, Glaser D, Steele M, Hammarlund M, Schuengel C, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, Steele H, Shaver PR, Lux U, Simmonds J, Jacobvitz D, Groh AM, Bernard K, Cyr C, Hazen NL, Foster S, Psouni E, Cowan PA, Cowan CP, Rifkin-Graboi A, Wilkins D, Pierrehumbert B, Tarabulsy GM, Cárcamo RA, Wang Z, Liang X, Kázmierczak M, Pawlicka P, Ayiro L, Chansa T, Sichimba F, Mooya H, McLean L, Verissimo M, Gojman-de-Millán S, Moretti MM, Bacro F, Peltola MJ, Galbally M, Kondo-Ikemura K, Behrens KY, Scott S, Rodriguez AF, Spencer R, Posada G, Cassibba R, Barrantes-Vidal N, Palacios J, Barone L, Madigan S, Mason-Jones K, Reijman S, Juffer F, Fearon RP, Bernier A, Cicchetti D, Roisman GI, Cassidy J, Kindler H, Zimmerman P, Feldman R, Spangle G, Zeanah CH, Dozier M, Belsky J, Lamb ME, Duschinsky R. El Apego Va a Juicio: Problemas de Custodia y Protección Infantil1. ANUARIO DE PSICOLOGÍA JURÍDICA 2021. [DOI: 10.5093/apj2021a26] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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4
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Meyerson KA, Hoddinott G, Garcia-Prats AJ, Tomlinson M. Caregiver-child separation during tuberculosis hospitalisation: a qualitative study in South Africa. SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2021; 51:409-421. [PMID: 34456393 DOI: 10.1177/0081246320962729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
There are an estimated 32,000 incident cases of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in children globally each year. Extended hospitalisation is often required to ensure optimal adherence to the complex multidrug-resistant tuberculosis treatment regimen. Hospitalisation usually results in caregiver-child separation which is known to cause psychological difficulties in children. We explored caregivers' and health workers' perceptions of the effects of caregiver-child separation during hospitalisation for tuberculosis in the Western Cape. We conducted semi-structured interviews with health workers (n = 7) and caregivers (n = 14) of children who were receiving multidrug-resistant tuberculosis treatment. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and translated. We used thematic analysis to organise and interpret the data. We identified three themes: (1) multidrug-resistant tuberculosis treatment was a distressing experience for children, caregivers, and health workers; (2) children's behavioural states during and post-hospitalisation (e.g., crying, aggression, hyperactivity, and withdrawal) were suggestive of their distress; and (3) caregivers and health workers used strategies, such as deception, threat, and the prioritisation of biomedical health over psychological health as a means to manage their own as well as the children's distress. This article presents novel research on the dynamics involved in caregiver-child separation as a result of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis treatment in South Africa. We highlight that the challenges of caregiver-child separation intersected with predisposing factors related to the social adversity that families affected by childhood tuberculosis experience. Delivery models that facilitate outpatient community-based care should be prioritised and a more structured form of psychological support should be implemented for those who still require hospitalisation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyla A Meyerson
- Desmond Tutu TB Centre, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
| | - Graeme Hoddinott
- Desmond Tutu TB Centre, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
| | - Anthony J Garcia-Prats
- Desmond Tutu TB Centre, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, South Africa
| | - Mark Tomlinson
- Institute for Life Course Health Research, Department of Global Health, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.,School of Nursing and Midwifery, Queens University, UK
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5
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Haltigan JD, Del Giudice M, Khorsand S. Growing points in attachment disorganization: looking back to advance forward. Attach Hum Dev 2021; 23:438-454. [PMID: 33890555 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2021.1918454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
In this special issue paper we reflect on the next generation of attachment research with a focus on disorganization, a central but still poorly understood topic in this area. We suggest that progress will be facilitated by a return to attachment theory's evolutionary roots, and to the emphasis on biological function that inspired Bowlby's original thinking. Increased interdisciplinary cross-fertilization and collaborations would enable novel and generative research on some of the long-standing questions surrounding attachment disorganization. Accordingly, we present an agenda for future research that encompasses contributions of modern ethology and neurobiology, novel hypotheses based on the concept of adaptive decanalization, connections with neurodevelopmental vulnerability and risk for mental disorders such as schizophrenia, and the possibility of sex differences in the behavioral manifestations of attachment disorganization. We believe that these avenues of theory and research offer exciting potential for innovative work in attachment disorganization in the years ahead.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Haltigan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Marco Del Giudice
- Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Soha Khorsand
- Faculty of Science, Western University, London, Canada
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6
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Forslund T, Granqvist P, van IJzendoorn MH, Sagi-Schwartz A, Glaser D, Steele M, Hammarlund M, Schuengel C, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, Steele H, Shaver PR, Lux U, Simmonds J, Jacobvitz D, Groh AM, Bernard K, Cyr C, Hazen NL, Foster S, Psouni E, Cowan PA, Pape Cowan C, Rifkin-Graboi A, Wilkins D, Pierrehumbert B, Tarabulsy GM, Carcamo RA, Wang Z, Liang X, Kázmierczak M, Pawlicka P, Ayiro L, Chansa T, Sichimba F, Mooya H, McLean L, Verissimo M, Gojman-de-Millán S, Moretti MM, Bacro F, Peltola MJ, Galbally M, Kondo-Ikemura K, Behrens KY, Scott S, Rodriguez AF, Spencer R, Posada G, Cassibba R, Barrantes-Vidal N, Palacios J, Barone L, Madigan S, Mason-Jones K, Reijman S, Juffer F, Pasco Fearon R, Bernier A, Cicchetti D, Roisman GI, Cassidy J, Kindler H, Zimmerman P, Feldman R, Spangler G, Zeanah CH, Dozier M, Belsky J, Lamb ME, Duschinsky R. Attachment goes to court: child protection and custody issues. Attach Hum Dev 2021; 24:1-52. [DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2020.1840762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tommie Forslund
- Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- SUF Resource Center, Region Uppsala, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Pehr Granqvist
- Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Marinus H. van IJzendoorn
- Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Avi Sagi-Schwartz
- School of Psychological Sciences and Center for the Study of Child Development, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Danya Glaser
- Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, UK
- Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Miriam Steele
- Psychology Department, The New School, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Carlo Schuengel
- Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences, Clinical Child and Family Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Marian J. Bakermans-Kranenburg
- Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences, Clinical Child and Family Studies, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Howard Steele
- Psychology Department, The New School, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Ulrike Lux
- Department Families and Family Policies, German Youth Institute, Munich, Germany
| | - John Simmonds
- British Association for Adoption and Fostering at Coram (Corambaaf), London, UK
| | - Deborah Jacobvitz
- Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Ashley M. Groh
- Department of Psychology, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO, USA
| | - Kristin Bernard
- Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Chantal Cyr
- Département de Psychologie, Université du Québec à Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Nancy L. Hazen
- Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Sarah Foster
- Department of Social Work, Education and Community Wellbeing, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
| | - Elia Psouni
- Department of Psychology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Philip A. Cowan
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | | | - Anne Rifkin-Graboi
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS, Agency for Science and Technology (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - David Wilkins
- School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | | | | | | | - Zhengyan Wang
- Research Centre for Child Development, Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Xi Liang
- Research Centre for Child Development, Beijing Key Laboratory of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Maria Kázmierczak
- Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Paulina Pawlicka
- Institute of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland
| | - Lilian Ayiro
- Department of Educational Psychology, Maseno University, Kisumu, Kenya
| | - Tamara Chansa
- Department of Psychology, University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | | | - Haatembo Mooya
- Department of Psychology, University of Zambia, Lusaka, Zambia
| | - Loyola McLean
- Brain and Mind Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Manuela Verissimo
- William James Center for Research, ISPA – Instituto Universitário, Lisboa, Portugal
| | | | | | - Fabien Bacro
- Faculté de Psychologie, Université de Nantes, Nantes, France
| | - Mikko J. Peltola
- Human Information Processing Laboratory, Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Megan Galbally
- College of Science, Health, Education and Engineering, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Australia
- School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Fremantle, Australia
- King Edward Memorial Hospital, Subiaco, Australia
| | | | - Kazuko Y. Behrens
- Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences, State University of New York Polytechnic Institute, Utica, NY, USA
| | - Stephen Scott
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Kings’s College London, London, UK
| | | | | | - Germán Posada
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
| | - Rosalinda Cassibba
- Department of Educational Sciences, Psychology, Communication, University of Bari, Bari, Italy
| | - Neus Barrantes-Vidal
- Departament de Psicologia Clínica i de la Salut, Universitat Autònoma De Barcelona, Spain
- Sant Pere Claver – Fundació Sanitària, Barcelona, Spain
- Centre for Biomedical Research Network on Mental Health (CIBERSAM), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jesus Palacios
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Seville, Seville, Spain
| | - Lavinia Barone
- Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, Lab of Attachment and Parenting - LAG, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Sheri Madigan
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
- Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Karen Mason-Jones
- Center for Health & Community, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Sophie Reijman
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Femmie Juffer
- Centre for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - R. Pasco Fearon
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Annie Bernier
- Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada
| | - Dante Cicchetti
- Institute of Child Development and Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Glenn I. Roisman
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Jude Cassidy
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | | | - Peter Zimmerman
- Department of Psychology/Developmental Psychology, University of Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Germany
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Gottfried Spangler
- Department of Psychology, Friedrich-Alexander-University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | | | - Mary Dozier
- Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, USA
| | - Jay Belsky
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Michael E. Lamb
- Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Robbie Duschinsky
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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7
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Duschinsky R. Attachment and the archive: barriers and facilitators to the use of historical sociology as complementary developmental science. SCIENCE IN CONTEXT 2019; 32:309-326. [PMID: 31829297 DOI: 10.1017/s0269889719000243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
This article explores historical sociology as a complementary source of knowledge for scientific research, considering barriers and facilitators to this work through reflections on one project. This project began as a study of the emergence and reception of the infant disorganized attachment classification, introduced in the 1980s by Ainsworth's student Mary Main, working with Judith Solomon. Elsewhere I have reported on the findings of collaborative work with attachment researchers, without giving full details of how this came about. Here, I will offer personal reflections arising from the process, and my work in what Hasok Chang has called history as "complementary science."
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8
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Vacaru SV, van Schaik JE, Hunnius S. The modulation of facial mimicry by attachment tendencies and their underlying affiliation motives in 3-year-olds: An EMG study. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0218676. [PMID: 31260488 PMCID: PMC6602198 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0218676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2019] [Accepted: 06/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
From early in life, facial mimicry represents an important example of implicit non-verbal communication. Facial mimicry is conceived of as the automatic tendency to mimic another person’s facial expressions and is thought to serve as a social glue among interaction partners. Although in adults mimicry has been shown to be moderated by the social context and one’s needs to affiliate with others, evidence from behavioural mimicry studies suggest that 3-year-olds do not yet show sensitivity to social dynamics. Here, we examined whether attachment tendencies, as a proxy for interindividual differences in affiliation motivation, modulates facial mimicry in 3-year-olds. Resistant and avoidant insecure attachment tendencies are characterized by high and low affiliation motivation, respectively, and these were hypothesized to lead to either enhancement or suppression of mimicry. Additionally, we hypothesized that these effects will be moderated by inhibitory control skills. Facial mimicry of happy and sad expressions was recorded with electromyography (EMG), attachment tendencies were assessed with a parent-report questionnaire and inhibitory control with the gift delay task. The final sample consisted of 42 children, with overall scores suggesting secure attachment. Our findings revealed that 3-year-olds mimicked happy and sad facial expressions. Moreover, resistant tendencies predicted enhanced sad but not happy facial mimicry, whereas avoidant tendencies were not significantly related to mimicry. These effects were not moderated by inhibitory control skills. In conclusion, these findings provide the first evidence for the modulation of mimicry by attachment tendencies and their underlying motivation for affiliation in young children, specifically for negatively-valenced emotional expressions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania V. Vacaru
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- * E-mail:
| | | | - Sabine Hunnius
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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9
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Reisz S, Duschinsky R, Siegel DJ. Disorganized attachment and defense: exploring John Bowlby's unpublished reflections. Attach Hum Dev 2018; 20:107-134. [PMID: 28952412 PMCID: PMC5782852 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2017.1380055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2017] [Accepted: 09/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Main and Solomon were the first to create a formal infant Strange Situation classification of attachment disorganization. Bowlby's reflections on the underlying psychological processes of such behaviors, however, began early in his career, including the term "disorganization." Most of these remained unpublished but are available through the John Bowlby Archive. Bowlby saw affective experiences as the source of the attachment behavioral system's organization and regulation, and he introduced the term "effector equipment" to describe the emergent organization of attention, expectation, affect, and behavior to orchestrate responses to the environment. In his thinking, disorganization results from threat conflict, safe haven ambiguity, and/or activation without assuagement, which interfere with coordination and integration across a behavioral system. Bowlby's unpublished writings also amplify his published work on segregated systems and defensive exclusion. Bowlby's insights are relevant today and can provide greater background and clarity to current work, as researchers and clinicians consider the origins, manifestations, and meaning of disorganization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha Reisz
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Robbie Duschinsky
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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10
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Reijman S, Foster S, Duschinsky R. The infant disorganised attachment classification: "Patterning within the disturbance of coherence". Soc Sci Med 2018; 200:52-58. [PMID: 29358155 PMCID: PMC5906638 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.12.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2017] [Revised: 12/17/2017] [Accepted: 12/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Since its introduction by Main and Solomon in 1990, the infant disorganised attachment classification has functioned as a predictor of mental health in developmental psychology research. It has also been used by practitioners as an indicator of inadequate parenting and developmental risk, at times with greater confidence than research would support. Although attachment disorganisation takes many forms, it is generally understood to reflect a child's experience of being repeatedly alarmed by their parent's behaviour. In this paper we analyse how the infant disorganised attachment classification has been stabilised and interpreted, reporting results from archival study, ethnographic observations at four training institutes for coding disorganised attachment, interviews with researchers, certified coders and clinicians, and focus groups with child welfare practitioners. Our analysis points to the role of power/knowledge disjunctures in hindering communication between key groups: Main and Solomon and their readers; the oral culture of coders and the written culture of published papers; the research community and practitioners. We highlight how understandings of disorganised attachment have been magnetised by a simplified image of a child fearful of his or her own parent.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sarah Foster
- Department of Social Work & Communities, Northumbria University, United Kingdom
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11
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Granqvist P, Sroufe LA, Dozier M, Hesse E, Steele M, van Ijzendoorn M, Solomon J, Schuengel C, Fearon P, Bakermans-Kranenburg M, Steele H, Cassidy J, Carlson E, Madigan S, Jacobvitz D, Foster S, Behrens K, Rifkin-Graboi A, Gribneau N, Spangler G, Ward MJ, True M, Spieker S, Reijman S, Reisz S, Tharner A, Nkara F, Goldwyn R, Sroufe J, Pederson D, Pederson D, Weigand R, Siegel D, Dazzi N, Bernard K, Fonagy P, Waters E, Toth S, Cicchetti D, Zeanah CH, Lyons-Ruth K, Main M, Duschinsky R. Disorganized attachment in infancy: a review of the phenomenon and its implications for clinicians and policy-makers. Attach Hum Dev 2017; 19:534-558. [PMID: 28745146 PMCID: PMC5600694 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2017.1354040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2017] [Accepted: 07/07/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Disorganized/Disoriented (D) attachment has seen widespread interest from policy makers, practitioners, and clinicians in recent years. However, some of this interest seems to have been based on some false assumptions that (1) attachment measures can be used as definitive assessments of the individual in forensic/child protection settings and that disorganized attachment (2) reliably indicates child maltreatment, (3) is a strong predictor of pathology, and (4) represents a fixed or static "trait" of the child, impervious to development or help. This paper summarizes the evidence showing that these four assumptions are false and misleading. The paper reviews what is known about disorganized infant attachment and clarifies the implications of the classification for clinical and welfare practice with children. In particular, the difference between disorganized attachment and attachment disorder is examined, and a strong case is made for the value of attachment theory for supportive work with families and for the development and evaluation of evidence-based caregiving interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pehr Granqvist
- Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - L. Alan Sroufe
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Mary Dozier
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, NY, USA
| | - Erik Hesse
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Miriam Steele
- Psychology Department, The New School, New York, NY, USA
| | - Marinus van Ijzendoorn
- Department of Psychology, Education, and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Judith Solomon
- Department of Public Health & Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Carlo Schuengel
- Clinical Child and Family Studies and Amsterdam Public Health, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Pasco Fearon
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College of London, London, UK
| | | | - Howard Steele
- Psychology Department, The New School, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jude Cassidy
- Psychology Department, University of Maryland, WashingtonDC, USA
| | - Elizabeth Carlson
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Sheri Madigan
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | | | - Sarah Foster
- Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Northumbria, Newcastle, UK
| | - Kazuko Behrens
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Utica, NY, USA
| | - Anne Rifkin-Graboi
- the Neurodevelopmental Research Center, the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Naomi Gribneau
- Department of Public Health & Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Gottfried Spangler
- Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany
| | - Mary J Ward
- Department of Pediatrics, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mary True
- Psychology Department, St Mary’s College of California, Moraga, NY, USA
| | - Susan Spieker
- Center on Human Development and Disability, University of Washington, Seattle, MA, USA
| | - Sophie Reijman
- Department of Public Health & Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Samantha Reisz
- Department of Public Health & Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Anne Tharner
- Department of Psychology, Education, and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Frances Nkara
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Ruth Goldwyn
- Child and Adolsecent Mental Health Service, Trafford Children and Young Peoples Service, Manchester, UK
| | - June Sroufe
- Minnesota Institute for Contemporary Psychotherapy and Psychoanalysis, Minneapolis, MI, USA
| | - David Pederson
- Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | | | - Robert Weigand
- T. Denny Sanford School of Social & Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Daniel Siegel
- School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Nino Dazzi
- Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Kristin Bernard
- Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Peter Fonagy
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College of London, London, UK
| | - Everett Waters
- Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Sheree Toth
- The Mt. Hope Family Center, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA
| | - Dante Cicchetti
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Charles H Zeanah
- Institute of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA
| | | | - Mary Main
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Robbie Duschinsky
- Department of Public Health & Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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