Relations of early maternal employment and attachment in introvertive and extravertive adults

The present study examined attachment scores of adult children whose mothers were employed and how maternal employment varied as a function of children's personality styles. Children's extraversion was expected to moderate the effects of maternal employment on their attachment as adults. Responses of 106 undergraduates were obtained on 3 measures, the Eysenck Personality Inventory, the Adult Attachment Scale of Collins and Read, and the Adolescent Relationship Scales Questionnaire of Scharfe and Bartholomew. A median split was performed to divide subjects into those scoring High and Low on Extraversion. Subjects were then grouped on the basis of their mothers' employment status during the subjects' infancy (Full-time, Part-time, Non-employed). Subjects high on Extraversion seemed to show more adverse attachment consequences in adulthood following full-time maternal employment during infancy. Adults who scored high on extraversion may have been more comfortable with continual maternal presence during infancy, while those more introverted as adults may have adapted better to the periods of separation associated with infant day care.