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Community agencies and practitioners around the globe seek opportunities to learn various assessment tools and interventions rooted in attachment theory. However, information regarding the feasibility of implementation and sustainability of these tools once participants have been trained to use them, is limited. This study investigated the perceived acceptability, feasibility, utility, relevance, fidelity, and sustainability of the Atypical Maternal Behavior Instrument for Assessment and Classification‐Brief (AMBIANCE‐Brief) among practitioners who had taken a training. Practitioners (N = 59) who attended a virtual AMBIANCE‐Brief training originating from Canada between June 2020 and November 2021 completed an online follow‐up survey. Practitioners reported that they primarily used the AMBIANCE‐Brief for case conceptualization (68%). Additionally, 95% agreed that the AMBIANCE‐Brief was relevant to their clinical practice, 98% agreed it was useful for their clinical work, 76% agreed that it was feasible to implement into their clinical work, and 59% found it easy to incorporate into their treatment planning with clients. Findings suggest that the AMBIANCE‐Brief may be acceptable, feasible, and useful for practitioners. Avenues for continuing to evaluate the AMBIANCE‐Brief include cross‐cultural validity, coder drift, and booster sessions. Additional work clarifying how practitioners integrate the measure into practice would be valuable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

"Attachment and Biobehavioural Catch‐Up" (ABC) is a 10 session home visiting program, grounded in attachment theory. It aims to improve child emotion regulation, attachment and behavioral outcomes through changing caregivers' attachment related behaviors. There is increasing evidence with respect to the effectiveness of ABC in producing positive child outcomes, but the intervention's direct effect on parent outcomes remains unclear. This review examined the association of ABC with attachment related parent outcomes. The PubMed, EMBASE, PyschINFO and SCOPUS databases were searched for relevant studies in August 2021, and again in April 2022. The eligibility criteria for included studies were (1) infants aged 0–27 months at time of the ABC intervention, (2) "at risk" parents, (3) controlled trials published in peer‐reviewed journals and (4) utilized a measure of attachment related parent outcomes. Eleven eligible studies were included. The findings showed ABC had a significant small to medium effect on a variety of attachment related parent outcomes among parents presenting with multiple psychosocial risk factors. "Sensitivity" was measured most frequently, with small to medium main effect sizes recorded at follow‐up, compared to controls. Implications for the clinical effectiveness of the ABC program in community settings are discussed. Future research should clarify who ABC is most effective for and how it compares to similar interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to attachment theory, an infant‐mother attachment is universal, and infants who develop an insecure attachment relationship with their mother are likely to show mental health problems compared to those who develop a secure attachment relationship. These hypotheses have been empirically supported in Western cultures. However, the cross‐cultural evidence is still insufficient. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between Japanese infants' attachment insecurity and mental health problems. We studied 81 Japanese infants (Mage = 14.64 months, SD = 1.43, females = 54%) mostly from middle‐class families. The Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) and Attachment Q‐sort (AQS) assessed infant attachment security. Infant externalizing and internalizing problems were rated concurrently by the mother and 6 months later by the mother and another adult (father or grandmother). Japanese infants' attachment insecurity measured by the AQS was associated with their externalizing problems concurrently and 6 months later. Infants with insecure‐resistant attachment measured by the SSP had higher externalizing problems compared to those with secure attachment concurrently (not 6 months later). Attachment insecurity was not related to internalizing problems. These findings partly supported the association between attachment insecurity and mental health problems. This research also recommends observing infant attachment at home. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attachment theory´s core hypotheses (universality, normativity, sensitivity, and competence) are assumed to be applicable worldwide. However, the majority of studies on attachment theory have been conducted in Western countries, and the extent to which these core hypotheses are supported by research conducted in Latin America has never been systematically addressed. The purpose of this systematic narrative literature review is to provide an integrative discussion of the current body of empirical studies concerning attachment theory conducted in Latin American countries. For that purpose, a search was conducted in four electronic databases (Web of Science, PsycInfo, SciELO, and Redalyc) and 82 publications on attachment and/or sensitivity met inclusion criteria. None of the studies reported cases in which an attachment relationship was absent, and a predominance of secure attachment patterns was found, mainly for non‐risk samples (NRS). Sensitivity levels were generally deemed adequate in NRS, and related to attachment quality. Attachment security and caregivers' sensitivity were positively associated with child outcomes. Attachment‐based intervention studies mostly showed efficacy. In conclusion, Latin American research supports the key theoretical assumptions of attachment theory, mainly in samples of urban middle‐class NRS. However, the field of attachment‐related research would be enriched by also investing in Latin American studies on caregiving rooted in local concepts and theories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The historic publication of the "consensus statement" on not using the "D/disorganized" category in the infant Strange Situation (M. Ainsworth, M. Blehar, E. Waters, & S. Wall, 1978) for case‐specific child protection work (P. Granqvist et al., 2017) opens the door for a broader discussion of different branches of attachment theory and different attachment classificatory systems applied to infants, young children, and their parents. We agree with the consensus authors that Strange Situation classifications alone, regardless of coding method, are insufficient for decision‐making. The authors, however, have acknowledged that the Dynamic‐Maturational Model of Attachment and Adaptation (DMM; Crittenden, 2016) offers a different perspective on classifying Strange Situations. The DMM is a branch of attachment theory that expands the Ainsworth A and C classifications across the life span to reflect the complex attachment strategies that some individuals use in dangerous contexts. We contrast the DMM to the D classification, both for the Strange Situation for infants and its adaptation for young children and also for the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI; C. George, N. Kaplan, & M. Main, 1984–1996) for their parents. We initiate a scientific dialogue by addressing three points: (a) "Attachment" does not imply or require a model that includes a D/disorganization category nor is the D/disorganized category the only clinical expansion of Mary Ainsworth's (1978) original work; (b) the DMM method for classifying Strange Situations may be better attuned to parental inadequacy and child protection than is the D/disorganized category; and (c) with attention to guidelines, DMM classifications from the Strange Situation with both infants and preschool‐aged children can be used in a case‐specific manner in both treatment and forensic settings. The same is true for other DMM assessments of attachment, including the AAI. We close by suggesting steps that could further understanding and application of Ainsworth's great accomplishment: individual differences in attachment relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Parenting group success begins with attendance. Using archival pilot data from 99 mothers who enrolled in the Mom Power ( MP) parenting intervention, this study sought to understand the factors that influenced participant engagement and retention. MP is a group-based, early intervention program grounded in attachment theory that utilizes motivational interviewing as a core component to enhance program engagement. Study aims were to qualitatively describe the reasons why mothers were interested in participating in the program, including what they hoped to gain from the experience, and to quantitatively examine the extent to which attendance was associated with demographic, experiential, and psychosocial factors. The qualitative analysis of intake interviews revealed that mothers expected the MP intervention to provide a warm environment for themselves and their children as well as to support and enhance their parenting, and 95% revealed their hopes that the intervention would help them grow and develop as women. Attendance rates were relatively high, with 62% of mothers missing less than one group session. Quantitative analyses using multiple regression to test associations of demographic, experiential, and psychosocial factors with attendance rates were not significant. Results suggest that motivational interviewing may be an important component in promoting participant engagement efforts in parenting interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Implementation of evidence-based interventions in 'real-world' settings is enhanced when front-line staff view the intervention as acceptable, appropriate, and feasible. This qualitative study addresses Early Head Start (EHS) home visitors' perceptions and experiences of an evidence-based parenting intervention, the Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up program (M. Dozier, O. Lindhiem, & J. Ackerman, 2005), when added to EHS services as usual within the context of a research-practice partnership. Thematic analysis of in-depth, qualitative interviews indicates that home visitors experienced the intervention as positive and helpful for EHS families. Some challenges included scheduling and uncertainty regarding the goals of the intervention. Concerns over participation in the research centered on information exchange, confidentiality, and time limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between maternal grieving for perinatal loss (PL) and the perception of and attachment to children born subsequent to a recent PL among mothers in Jordan. A cross-sectional, descriptive correlational design was used. A convenience sample of 190 mothers of full-term, healthy newborns born subsequent to a recent PL was recruited from seven Maternal and Child Health Care Centers in Jordan. These mothers were assessed using the Perinatal Grief Scale (L.J. Toedter, J.N. Lasker, & J.M. Alhadeff), 1988, the Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale (J.T. Condon & C.J. Corkindale, 1998), and the Neonatal Perception Inventory II (E. Broussard, 1979). Results showed a significant negative relationship between grief intensity and the attachment level, r = −.37, p = .000, and a significant positive relationship between the attachment level and neonatal perception, r = .28, p = .000. Mothers' grief intensity was significantly affected by their demographic characteristics; however, there was no significant relationship between grief intensity and neonatal perception, r = .23, p = .23. Perinatal grief was negatively related to maternal attachment to the subsequent child. Nurses should address bereaved mothers and their children who might be at risk for developing attachment disturbances to facilitate positive adaptation to the subsequent pregnancy and parenthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This 49-family study is the first to explore the father-child relationship in a clinical population of preschoolers (at a tertiary care child psychiatry clinic) and to examine its relation to child anxiety and attachment to the mother. A moderation model of the father-child activation relationship on the relation between attachment to the mother and child anxiety was tested and discussed. Analyses confirmed the expected independence between mother-child attachment and father-child activation as well as the association between mother-child attachment and anxiety. The highest levels of anxiety were found in insecure children, and more specifically, in insecure-ambivalent children and insecure disorganized-controlling children of the caregiving subtype. Hypotheses regarding the relation between anxiety and activation were only partially confirmed. Finally, the activation relationship with the father was shown to have a moderating effect on the relation between attachment to the mother and child anxiety; activation by the father may be considered either a protective or a risk factor. Results for this clinical population of young children are discussed in the light of attachment theory and activation relationship theory. The study's findings have the potential to contribute to the development of preventative, diagnostic, and intervention programs that take both parental figures into account. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of premature birth on attachment have generally been examined from the infant's perspective. There is a lack of data concerning parental attachment representations toward a premature child. Because of the psychological stress engendered in parents confronted with a premature birth, we hypothesized that their attachment representations would be altered during the first months after the hospital discharge. Fifty families with a premature infant (25–33 gestation weeks) and a control group of 30 families with a full-term infant participated to the study. Perinatal risks were evaluated during hospitalization. To assess mothers' representations of their infant, the Working Model of the Child Interview (WMCI, Zeanah & Benoit, 1995 & Benoit, Zeanah, Parker, Nicholson, & Coolbear, 1997) were administered when their children were 6 and 18 months old. The severity of the perinatal risks was found to have an impact on the mothers' attachment representations. At six months, only 20% of the mothers of a prematurely born infant (30% at 18 months) had secure attachment representations, vs. 53% for the control group (57% at 18 months). Furthermore, mothers of low-risk premature infants more often had disengaged representations, whereas distorted representations were more frequent in the high-risk group of premature children. These findings suggest that the parental response to a premature birth is linked to the severity of postnatal risks. The fact that secure attachment representations are affected in mothers of low-risk infants just as much as they are in mothers of high-risk infants points to the need to conduct further studies aimed at evaluating whether preventive intervention for both low-risk and high-risk premature will be helpful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]