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Infant Attachment Insecurity and Baseline Physiological Activity and Physiological Reactivity to Interpersonal

Ashley M Groh1, Angela J Narayan2

  • 1University of Missouri.

Child Development
|January 11, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Early childhood attachment insecurity is linked to significant physiological stress responses, particularly heightened heart rate and cortisol levels during parent reunions. This impacts the biobehavioral development of attachment.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental psychology
  • Psychophysiology
  • Attachment theory

Background:

  • Attachment security is crucial for early socio-emotional development.
  • Physiological responses provide objective measures of stress and emotional regulation.
  • Understanding the interplay between attachment and physiology informs early intervention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between early life attachment insecurity and physiological activity.
  • To examine these links at baseline and in response to interpersonal stress.
  • To elucidate the biobehavioral organization of attachment in young children.

Main Methods:

  • Meta-analytic review of 5-10 studies with 258-895 participants aged 1-5 years.
  • Assessment of physiological measures including heart rate (HR) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), and cortisol.
  • Utilized separation-reunion procedures to elicit interpersonal stress.

Main Results:

  • Attachment insecurity showed trivial, nonsignificant associations with baseline physiological activity (HR, RSA, cortisol).
  • Insecurity was nonsignificantly linked to physiological reactivity during parent separation.
  • Attachment insecurity was moderately associated with heightened RSA and cortisol reactivity upon parent reunion.

Conclusions:

  • Early life attachment insecurity is associated with specific patterns of physiological reactivity to interpersonal stress.
  • Heightened physiological responses during reunion suggest a biobehavioral consequence of insecure attachment.
  • Findings highlight the importance of secure attachment for adaptive physiological regulation in early development.

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