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Understanding the transmission of attachment using variable- and relationship-centered approaches

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 April 2007

HEIDI N. BAILEY ,
GREG MORAN ,
DAVID R. PEDERSON  and
SANDI BENTO
HEIDI N. BAILEY
Affiliation:
University of Guelph
GREG MORAN
Affiliation:
University of Western Ontario
DAVID R. PEDERSON
Affiliation:
University of Western Ontario
SANDI BENTO
Affiliation:
University of Western Ontario
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Abstract

The interrelations of maternal attachment representations, mother–infant interaction in the home, and attachment relationships were studied in 99 adolescent mothers and their 12-month-old infants. A q-factor analysis was used to identify emergent profiles of mother and infant interaction. Traditional multivariate statistical analyses were complemented by a relationship-based approach utilizing latent class analysis. The results confirmed many theoretical predictions linking interaction with autonomous maternal representations and secure attachment, but failed to support a mediating role for maternal sensitivity. Strong associations were found between mothers displaying nonsensitive and disengaged interaction profiles, infants who did not interact harmoniously with the mother and preferred interaction with the visitor, unresolved maternal representations, and disorganized attachment relationships. Moreover, maternal nonsensitive and disengaged interaction in the home mediated the association between unresolved representations and disorganization. The results of the latent class analysis were consistent with these findings and revealed additional, empirically derived associations between attachment classifications and patterns of interactive behavior, some of which prompt a reconsideration of our current understanding of attachment transmission in at-risk populations.This research was supported by a predoctoral fellowship to the first author from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and by research grants to the second and third authors from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Ontario Mental Health Foundation, and Health Canada.

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Type
Research Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 19 , Issue 2 , April 2007 , pp. 313 - 343
Copyright
© 2007 Cambridge University Press

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