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A Modified Trier Social Stress Test for Vulnerable Mexican American Adolescents
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Parental support and insecure attachment development: the cortisol stress response as a moderator
M Houbrechts1, B Cuyvers1, L Goossens2
1Clinical Psychology Research Group, KU Leuven (University of Leuven), Leuven, Belgium.
Attachment & Human Development
|April 19, 2021
Summary
Children's cortisol stress response influences how parental support affects anxious attachment. A strong stress response can weaken the positive impact of parental support on reducing anxious attachment over time.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Stress Response Research
- Attachment Theory
Background:
- Parental support is crucial for healthy attachment development in children.
- Individual differences in stress reactivity may influence this relationship.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if cortisol stress response moderates the link between parental support and attachment development.
- To examine changes in attachment anxiety and avoidance over one year.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study with 101 children (ages 11-12) over two waves.
- Measured attachment anxiety/avoidance, parental support, and cortisol response to Trier Social Stress Test.
Main Results:
- Cortisol stress response moderated the association between parental support and changes in anxious attachment.
- A strong cortisol response weakened the link between parental support and reduced anxious attachment.
- No moderation was found for avoidant attachment changes.
Conclusions:
- Children's physiological stress response plays a role in how parental support shapes anxious attachment.
- This highlights the complex interplay between stress, support, and attachment formation.
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