Secure Attachment Paper

Most adolescents face the same obstacles in life and experience similar difficulties. Friends in childhood are primarily found at “school” (Murray 2009). This is because they

The importance of a healthy attachment in early childhood development can lead to a better adult development and skills for daily life. A secure and healthy attachment to the caregiver in infancy to adolescence showcases the importance of building strong relationships and coping skills during periods of stress and anxiety. The research that has been found, goes into detail about the different types of attachments that infants and children can develop as well as what negative and positive aspects come along with the attachments.

Attachment is an emotional bond that is created between one person to another across a life span. Attachment can be a connection between two individuals, but it is a bond that involves a regular contact with that person and also expressed distress when separated from that person. Also, attachment can play an important role during childhood, adolescent and romantic relationships. Attachment tends to be enduring and meaningful because it can last for a long time between people. However, being attached can motivate children to stay close to people that they love. Attachment can also help people build emotional bond between each others, that can have a secure base so that people can safely explore their environment. Although studies have shown that children who are securely attached can also develop an increase of independence and confidence. Meanwhile, children who are not securely attached can develop risks such as poor internal working models in life.

In the early 1970’s little was known regarding children’s friendships. Bigalow and La Gaipa (1975) assessed developmental differences by having grade school children write 480 essays on what they expected of their best friend that was not expected from other

A healthy or secure attachment develops over time because of a caregiver’s consistent, sensitive care that they have towards a young child. Each time a caregiver interacts in ways that focus fully on the individual child, it furthers connections. When a caregiver attempts to read a baby’s cues and tries to respond to the child’s needs and wishes, the baby learns the caregiver is a source of comfort and security. Children with secure attachments learn that their world is a safe place because the people in it are caring and understanding. They also learn that their ways of communicating result in others responding and understanding them. This reinforces their efforts to continue to express themselves to others. Consistent back-and-forth exchanges that happen over time are one of the ways to build positive relationships. Children with secure attachments feel confident in exploring their environment, which allows them to learn. It’s the accumulation of intimacy during these numerous interactions that turns ordinary tasks into a relationship-based curriculum.

In an experiment comparing positive attachment to positive self-esteem, it was concluded that, “securely attached children were likely to develop a positive working model of self ”. (p 2505, The Internal Working Model of the Self, Attachment, and Competence in Five-Year-Olds). Conversely, the same study proved children with poor attachment, had a more difficult time in social interactions. (p 2505, The Internal Working Model of the Self, Attachment, and Competence in Five-Year-Olds). The positive working model is one component to help create positive socio-economic development for the child.

When a child’s early experiences are chaotic and one or both parents are absent these causes the brain to become stressed and make the child feel insecure. The NCCP states, “Many children whose mothers suffer from depression lack healthy brain development” (NCCP). This can lead the child to have trouble connecting with classmates and lack of social skills. The article also mentions, “Daily interaction plays an important role in a child’s emotional and mental development” (NCCP). Positive interactions not only with classmates but also parents or adults can also help a child become more secure of themselves and allow them to ambition greater things than that of their parents. Overall, relationships between teachers and students are important. Poverty is a factor to the lack of social skills in children because the lack of positive role models in the

John Bowlby’s work in attachment has been one of the foundational works when determining the level of attachments and bonds that a child and parent may experience (Webb, 2011). According to Bowlby, “attachment” is referring to a lasting, mutual bond of affection that is dependent on an individual or more than one person (Webb, 2011). Establishing a secure attachment during infancy and early childhood is an important task of a parent or a caregiver. Not all parents or caregivers can provide their child or children with a secure attachment at this important in life due to various reasons. Since parents are the main providers in their child’s development of attachment, their lives and history have a great influence on their children’s lives.

You have excellent points about the secure attachment style! Secure relationships are built on trust and confidence in one's self and others. I liked how you displayed a scenario about how a secure relationship is handled under stress. Instead of avoiding Bill, Sally confronted him with the issue. If she had another attachment style, she would have blown up in his face or stop talking to him and shut him out. However, since she has a secure relationship style, she confronted him about the issue with controlled anger. Secure people can become angry but their anger springs from hope. This confrontation will help them resolve the situation and relieve the tension between them!

Attachment is defined as a deep, affectionate, and enduring emotional bond that forms between two people, namely an infant and a caregiver. It is developed during the first years of an infant’s life and has four types depending on the quality of the attachment: secure, ambivalent, avoidant, and disorganised. It has been reported that approximately only 60 to 65 percent of children form secure attachment to their caregivers. Research indicates that the early attachment relationship is an essential foundation for later development. Insecurely attached infants are more likely to grow into aggressive, defiant and hyperactive individuals with lower academic skills compared to securely attached children, they are also more prone to psychiatric disorders and other problems. In contrast, individuals who form a secure attachment in their infancy are more resilient to depression, parental stress, family instability, and poverty compared to those who form an insecure attachment. Given the prevalence and consequences, it is important to educate parents on the impacts that attachment quality can have on a child’s development and later life.

Early social development is the study of the development of persons from infancy to adulthood. Research is conducted into how childhood experiences affect people’s development in later life. Attachment theories are studied and the effect of no attachment or disrupted attachment is studied and aimed to be resolved. John Bowlby defined attachment as the emotional and physical connection that makes two people stay close to one another. It is between children and their primary caregivers (Psychologistworld.com, 2016).

During the past fifty years much research has been carried out on the secure and insecure attachments for children.

Development is an essential and mandatory constituent of human life that operates on multiple levels. It is a precise process, and there are a number of factors that affect its effectiveness. In particular, the development of a child is determinant of the adolescent behaviors, uniqueness and intelligence. Therefore, a considerable degree of weight is placed on the components that lead to the maturity of the child. In the development of a child, one of the key principles is called attachment. Just as safe attachment between the caregiver and the child can result in successful physical, mental and social development, vulnerable attachment can yield damaging consequences for the child in these areas (DeMulder, Denham, Schmidt, & Mitchell, 2000). Reactive attachment disorder is a likely outcome of unsafe attachment that eventually restricts the child’s capacity to emotionally and socially connect with other individuals, while destroying the cognitive ability as well (Crosson-Tower, 2013). This paper presents a detailed discussion on the attachment disorder in children and its impact on child development.

In the future, a child with a secure attachment is empathetic and eager to try new things in life (Perry; Romero). A typical child has an optimistic attitude and they enjoy interacting with other people (Perry). Also, “Kids who were secure as infants

Social interaction is a complex area of study because of how multifaceted it is. Social stability starts at an early age when the child or adolescent learns how to develop trust, take initiative, and achieve a sense of identity. Erick Erickson is a great example of showing the importance of completing the psychosocial stages of development (Erikson 1994). One can glean how crucial these psychosocial stages are and the support needed around the developing child to meet these checkpoints in their life. Children are incredibly malleable; however, instilling a negative light toward social interaction can affect how they manage their later years. Being aware of the crucial beginning steps of social interaction can set the stage on how one will be throughout their adulthood.