Attachment Disorder

Attachment Theory

John Bowlby began to formulate attachment theory (integrating numerous disciplines, including, but not limited to, cognitive science, ethology, and object relations theories), and his work was the basis for a major departure from existing psychoanalytic views, which focused more on fantasy life than on actual interactions and relationships. He focused on the role of brief, as well as long-term (temporary as well as permanent), separations of infants from their care-givers and their potential impact on defensive processes of the growing infant. A focus on childhood mourning in the event of parental loss through death was also given considerable attention in terms of children's ability to attach and love. Bowlby's work was not solely on clinical populations of patients but also on normative individuals' experiences.

In 1950, Mary Ainsworth joined Bowlby's research team and was fascinated by the terrain of research ideas offered by attachment theory. It was Ainsworth and her team who developed a laboratory-based methodology for testing Bowlby's theory—the now well-known Strange Situation Procedure. In brief, an infant and caregiver (an attachment figure) are introduced into this unfamiliar context, which involves two separations from the caregiver as well as two reunions [Page 77]with the caregiver. The separations are very brief (from 30 seconds to 3 minutes, depending on the reaction and stress shown by the infant). The reunion response of the infant is thought to show the infant's view of this relationship with this particular caregiver, with happy greetings (even after potential turmoil during the separations) being indicative of a secure relationship. In contrast, avoidance, clingyness, or a mixture of such behaviors and bizarre reactions are reflective of an insecure relationship with this care-giver. While there is only one form of security, as suggested above, there are several forms of insecurity, as seen in the Strange Situation, with avoidance being referred to as insecure/avoidance, clingyness being referred to as insecure/ambivalence, and a mixture of responses including bizarre behaviors such as freezing or stilling being indicative of insecure/disorganization. It should be noted that Ainsworth and her team identified the first three, whereas Mary Main and Judith Solomon identified the disorganized pattern.

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