Provides overview of attachment theory as parented by John Bowlby in "Attachment and Loss". Uses two major concepts from this work to interpret refinements and elaborations of attachment theory attibuted to Mary Ainsworth. Considers how recent insights into development of socioemotional understanding and development of event…

Investigates the possible relationships among the variables of infant's temperament, mother's mode of interaction, and the quality of the subsequent mother-infant attachment. (Author/NH)

Compares maltreated and nonmaltreated infants and their caregivers with regard to security and quality of the attachment relationship over time. The finding that a greater proportion of maltreated infants in each of three age groups was insecurely attached is in accordance with the predictions based on Ainsworth's and Bowlby's attachment theory.…

Discusses individual differences in attachment relationships as they relate to individual differences in mental representation, that is, in the individual's "internal working models" of attachment. Compares individual differences in security of attachment to each parent as assessed in the Ainsworth Strange Situation in infancy to diverse…

Presents two bodies of research relevant to the question of intergenerational continuity of attachment quality: studies documenting the effects of separation or disruption in the family of origin, and studies in which parents reported on their childhood attachments. Interprets this research within a theoretical perspective derived from the works…

Notes how preceding articles expand the repertoire of theory-relevant assessments of attachment, with a special emphasis on Ainsworth's concept of the secure base. Focuses on a number of issues raised by this collection that are particularly promising for theory development, including assessment of secure-base behavior and maternal sensitivity,…

Reports use of the strange situation procedure to explore the effects of Israeli kibbutz child-rearing practices on the development of infant-mother, infant-father, and infant-caretaker attachment. (Author/NH)

Presents Attachment Q-Set adapted for study of monkeys as described by Kondo-Ikemura and Waters in this issue. (HTH)

Presents scoring key for the original Attachment Q-Set and that adapted for study of secure-base behavior of monkeys, as described by Kondo-Ikemura and Waters in this same issue. (HTH)

Verbal and nonverbal behaviors of fifty 2-year-old children and their mothers were recorded during free play, departure, and separation situations. Measures of the child's and mother's cognitive abilities and maternal cognitive style were also obtained. Sex and social class differences in child and maternal behaviors within each situation were…

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)

A study identified the antecedent characteristics of child and family best predicting behavioral/emotional problems at three years of age. Considered were the relationship of the index of attachment security to several mother-child relationship measures and to other child characteristics, such as difficult temperament and sociability. (Author/NH)

This essay reviews research on mother-infant roles during early interactions and how these serve to foster the development of infant emotion regulation. It provides illustrations of the ways in which physical unavailability (resulting from hospitalization or other separation) and emotional unavailability (resulting from mental illnesses such as…

Studied mothers' behavior toward their infants with disorganized (type D) attachment strategies. Found that mothers whose infants are classified disorganized exhibit an elevated level of atypical maternal behaviors in the Strange Situation test. Mothers of type D Forced Insecure infants showed more negative-intrusive behaviors and role confusion…

Attempts to replicate Ainsworth's Baltimore study by conducting lengthy home observations of mother-infant interactions before observing the infants in the strange situation. (NH)