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Exploring everyday state attachment dynamics in middle childhood.

Authors :
Verhees MWFT
Ceulemans E
Finet C
van IJzendoorn MH
Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ
Bosmans G
Source :
Development and psychopathology [Dev Psychopathol] 2023 May; Vol. 35 (2), pp. 652-661. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Jan 25.
Publication Year :
2023

Abstract

The current study explored dynamics of secure state attachment expectations in everyday life in middle childhood, specifically state attachment carry-over and reactivity to experiences of caregiver support in the context of stress. In two independent samples (one community sample, N = 123; one adoption sample, N = 69), children (8-12 years) daily reported on their state attachment for respectively 14 and 7 consecutive days. Additionally, they reported daily on their experiences of distress and subsequent experiences of caregiver support. Results in both samples indicated that secure state attachment on a day-to-day basis is characterized by a significant positive carry-over effect, suggesting that state attachment fluctuations are (partially) self-predictive. In Study 1, experiencing no support following distress significantly related to intraindividual decreases in secure state attachment; in Study 2, experiencing effective support during distress related to intra-individual increases in secure state attachment. Taken together, the current studies provide novel and important insights into how state attachment temporally evolves on a day-to-day basis in middle childhood.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1469-2198
Volume :
35
Issue :
2
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Development and psychopathology
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
35074034
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579421001784