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Attachment organizations in children with difficult life circumstances
1Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, University of California, Los Angeles 90095-1521, USA. howes@gseis.ucla.edu
Development and Psychopathology
|March 2, 2006
Summary
This study developed new attachment organization categories using the Attachment Q-Set (AQS) for diverse children, including those in difficult circumstances. The AQS categories effectively related to behavior problems and social competence.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Child Psychology
- Attachment Theory
Background:
- Attachment organization is crucial for child development.
- Existing attachment assessments may not fully capture diverse or challenging circumstances.
- The Attachment Q-Set (AQS) offers a flexible method for assessing attachment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop reliable and valid attachment organization categories using the AQS.
- To create categories specifically describing insecure attachment in children facing adversity.
- To ensure conceptual consistency with established attachment assessment categories.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the Attachment Q-Set (AQS) for 3062 teacher-child relationships.
- Assessed toddlers to kindergartners from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.
- Collected data via AQS, peer play observation, behavior questionnaires, and teacher-student relationship scales.
Main Results:
- Developed five AQS subscales and six attachment organizational categories.
- These categories demonstrated theoretically meaningful associations with behavior problems.
- Categories also correlated with peer social competence and teacher-perceived child-teacher relationships.
Conclusions:
- The AQS can generate valid and reliable attachment organization categories.
- These categories are particularly useful for understanding insecure attachment in at-risk children.
- The findings support the AQS's utility in diverse clinical and educational settings.
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