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Emotional and Adrenocortical Responses of Infants to the Strange Situation: The Differential Function of Emotional Expression
Abstract
The aim of the study was to investigate biobehavioural organisation in infants with different qualities of attachment. Quality of attachment (security and disorganisation), emotional expression, and adrenocortical stress reactivity were investigated in a sample of 106 infants observed during Ainsworth’s Strange Situation at the age of 12 months. In addition, behavioural inhibition was assessed from maternal reports. As expected, securely attached infants did not show an adrenocortical response. Regarding the traditionally defined insecurely attached groups, adrenocortical activation during the strange situation was found for the ambivalent group, but not for the avoidant one. Previous ndings of increased adrenocortical activity in disorganised infants could not be replicated. In line with previous ndings, adrenocortical activation was most prominent in insecure infants with high behavioural inhibition indicating the function of a secure attachment relationship as a social buffer against less adaptive temperamental dispositions. Additional analyses indicated that adrenocortical reactivity and behavioural distress were not based on common activation processes. Biobehavioural associations within the different attachment groups suggest that biobehavioural processes in securely attached infants may be different from those in insecurely attached and disorganised groups. Whereas a coping model may be applied to describe the biobehavioural organisation of secure infants, an arousal model explanation may be more appropriate for the other groups.
... That is, social and physical environments help to shape the calibration of the stress response system over time, resulting in the stress response system's differential and adaptive functionality, as well as its contributions to individual differences in behavior. Our results echo several other reports in the literature Spangler & Schieche, 1998;Tu et al., 2007;Wagner et al., 2016). These results concluded a negative association between baseline cortisol and behavioral regulation in young children under the condition of insecure attachment status or problematic parenting behaviors. ...
... These results concluded a negative association between baseline cortisol and behavioral regulation in young children under the condition of insecure attachment status or problematic parenting behaviors. In addition, under the condition of secure attachment status, Spangler and Schieche (1998) also reported a null association between baseline cortisol and regulation. Taken together, our results are in accordance with previous explanation that, compared to securely attached infants, physiological characteristics were more prominent in insecurely attached infants (Gunnar & Donzella, 2002;Levine & Wiener, 1988;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
... In addition, under the condition of secure attachment status, Spangler and Schieche (1998) also reported a null association between baseline cortisol and regulation. Taken together, our results are in accordance with previous explanation that, compared to securely attached infants, physiological characteristics were more prominent in insecurely attached infants (Gunnar & Donzella, 2002;Levine & Wiener, 1988;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Some researchers have reported that, chronic non-preferred rearing environment likely causes the secretion of cortisol levels to be below normal concentrations (Miller, Chen, & Zhou, 2007;Wesarg, Van Den Akker, Oei, Hoeve, & Wiers, 2020). ...
Effortful control (EC) is a regulatory capacity that refers to children's ability to inhibit a dominant response to perform a subdominant response. Although attempts have been made to identify early predictors of children's EC, the confluence and interaction of child‐, familial‐, and community factors has not been pursued adequately. This study investigated how predictors from different aspects of children's rearing environment interacted to predict later EC. In a sample of 88 primiparous women with elevated depressive symptomotology and low household income, we examined how children's own psychobiology (baseline cortisol), familial relationship (mother–child attachment), and community resources (social support) at 17 months independently and jointly predicted EC at age 5. Our results showed that, controlling for maternal depressive symptomotology and household income, predictors from child‐, familial‐, and community‐aspect function integratively, rather than independently, in predicting later EC. Specifically, within the context of a secure attachment relationship, baseline cortisol positively predicts later EC only for children of mothers who reported low social support. Whereas within the context of an insecure attachment relationship, baseline cortisol negatively predicts later EC, regardless of the perceived social support levels. Our results highlighted the importance of taking into consideration predictors from multiple aspects for intervention designs.
... This study was included with the RSA set of studies because these indices of vagal tone are highly correlated (Goedhart, Van der Sluis, Houtveen, Willemsen, & De Geus, 2007). For studies that reported on two postprocedure cortisol assessments (e.g., Spangler & Schieche, 1998), data from the first assessment were extracted, as this assessment is most comparable to studies reporting on only one assessment. ...
... Studies employing the Attachment Q-Sort completed by mothers were excluded, as meta-analytic evidence indicates that this is not a valid assessment of attachment (Groh, Narayan, et al., 2017;Van IJzendoorn, Vereijken, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & Riksen-Walraven, 2004). Studies were included if they assessed attachment with the primary caregiver, and all but three studies reported on attachment with the mother (Oosterman et al., 2010 examined foster primary caregivers; Grossmann, 1993 andSchieche, 1998 sample included some fathers). ...
... Because participants can be included in a meta-analysis only once, the publication that reported data in the format most amenable to meta-analysis (e.g., baseline and reactivity values reported) was included in our meta-analysis (e.g., Nachmias et al., 1996). For studies that reported longitudinal data in which physiological (re)activity was assessed several times over development (e.g., Schieche & Spangler, 2005;Spangler & Schieche, 1998), the publication that reported on the assessment of physiological (re)activity that was completed closest in time to the attachment assessment was included in the meta-analysis (e.g., Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Some studies reported results separately for boys and girls. ...
This meta‐analytic review (k = 5–10; N = 258–895) examined links between attachment insecurity and physiological activity at baseline and in response to interpersonal stress elicited by separation–reunion procedures in the early life course (1–5 years). Insecurity was trivially, nonsignificantly associated with baseline physiological activity (heart rate [HR]: g = −.06; respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]: g = −.06; cortisol: g = .01) and nonsignificantly associated with physiological reactivity to separation from parents (HR: g = −.001; RSA: g = .24). However, insecurity was moderately associated with heightened RSA (g = .26) and cortisol (g = .27) reactivity upon reunion with parents. Findings provide insight into the biobehavioral organization of attachment, suggesting that early insecurity is associated with heightened physiological reactivity to interpersonal stress.
... In fact, attachment has also been linked to regulatory abilities. Securely attached children display less significant HPA axis activation when assessed in the Strange Situation Procedure (Spangler & Grossmann, 1993;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Furthermore, in a recent review, Brumariu (2015) presented studies that found that securely attached children are more competent in emotional regulation than insecurely attached children. ...
... Attachment security and regulatory abilities on their own may elicit more emotional input from caregivers (King et al., 2019). We advance that the mechanism through which nurturance behaviors promote the development of more emotional abilities of EF is attachment security, which helps physiological and emotional regulation Brumariu, 2015;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993;Spangler & Schieche, 1998;Sroufe, 2000). The children's immature self-regulation abilities are supported by caregivers that both provide exogenous input but also serve as a primary model for these abilities. ...
... Activation of secure working models of attachment supports emotional and physiological regulations in response to stress and everyday situations. Insecure attachment working models, in contrast, reflect dysregulation in organic conditions and affective processes that often lead to the development of mental and physical symptoms (Fonagy & Target, 2005;Fonagy, Gergely, Jurist, & Target, 2002;Gunnar, Broderson, Nachmias, Buss, & Rigatuso, 1996;Mikulincer, Shaver, & Pereg, 2003;Schore, 2003;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
... Taken together, theories and empirical evidence have suggested that the developmental circumstances associated with childhood adversity are frequently harsh and erratic, undermining children's felt security that is foundational to adaptive working models of attachment (Baer & Martinez, 2006;Cummings & Davies, 1994;Yumbul, Cavusoglu, & Geyimci, 2010). Research has also documented that insecure attachment working models may disrupt normal regulations of basic bodily and affective processes, conferring risks for developing mental and physical symptoms (Fonagy & Target, 2005;Mikulincer et al., 2003;Schore, 2003;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). The question arises as to whether the individual differences in attachment working models may serve as a factor shaping the link between adverse childhood experiences and somatic symptoms. ...
Background:
Although prior research has documented the link between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and somatic symptoms, it remains unclear why some individuals exposed to ACEs developed somatic symptoms while others did not.
Objective:
Framed by a biopsychosocial perspective, this study investigated the role of attachment anxiety in the association between ACEs and somatic symptoms in adulthood.
Participants and setting:
A total of 662 emerging adults attending college were recruited to respond to an online survey in a computer lab.
Method:
The computer-based survey included demographic form, the Adverse Childhood Experience Scale, the Experience in Close Relationship Scale-Short Form, and the Somatization Scale of the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised for somatic symptoms. Multivariate regression analyses were used to examine the role of attachment anxiety in the association between ACEs and somatic symptoms.
Results:
The results indicated that ACEs positively correlated with attachment anxiety and somatic symptoms; and attachment anxiety and somatic symptoms were positively correlated. Moreover, the results indicated a significant effect of interaction between ACEs and attachment anxiety on somatic symptoms, suggesting a moderating role of attachment anxiety. Subsequent simple slope test revealed that attachment anxiety intensified the strength of relation between ACEs and somatic symptoms; but when the level of attachment anxiety was low, ACEs and somatic symptoms were not related.
Conclusion:
Individual differences in attachment anxiety shape the association of adverse childhood experiences with somatic symptoms. Targeting and reformulating anxious working models of attachment may help ameliorate vulnerability to somatic symptoms in individuals exposed to ACEs.
... Their mothers could calm them down easily. Infants classified as avoidant, displayed hardly any negative expressions combined with low secretions of cortisol (Braungart-Rieker, Garwood, Powers, & Wang, 2001;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
... had an insensitive caregiver who did not respond promptly and appropriately to their expressive reactions. For these infants, temperament made the difference (Braungart-Rieker et al., 2001;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Insensitive mothers (and fathers) of infants high in negative expressivity could not coregulate their strong negative reactions promptly and consequently. ...
For research on emotional development, defining emotions as psychological systems of appraisals, expressions, body reactions, and subjective feelings in all phases of ontogenesis raises tricky methodological issues. How can we measure single emotions when appraisals and feelings cannot be assessed from outside, when expressions do not seem to be tied unequivocally to single emotions, and feelings are sometimes decoupled from perceivable expressions? Furthermore, how does a restricted set of neonate emotions differentiate into a culturally modified set of adult emotions? This article presents an innovative answer to these issues by applying Vygotsky’s culture-historical approach on the psychological significance of social signs to the analysis of emotion, expression, and their development. The core assumption is that humans learn to use emotional expressions as communicative signs that appeal to another person to regulate their interaction through emotions and as psychological signs that appeal to the self to regulate the self’s actions through emotions. This twofold function assigns a significant mediating role to expression for not only culture-historical and ontogenetic differentiation but also a growing awareness, self-regulation, and mental processing of emotions. The article describes three stages of emotional development supported by empirical evidence on how a biologically given set of neonate emotions are transformed into a culturally modified set of conscious, sign-mediated emotions that enables a decoupling of expression and feeling.
... Two small studies (n ¼ 38 to 49) reported secure and insecure infants and toddlers had similar cortisol levels after the SST (Gunnar, Mangelsdorf, Larson, & Hertsgaard, 1989;Hertsgaard, Gunnar, Erickson, & Nachmias, 1995), while one small study (n ¼ 32) found higher cortisol 30 min post-SST among insecure children (Spangler & Grossman, 1993). In addition, two large study (n ¼ 106 to 360) found insecure resistant children had higher levels of cortisol post-SST, as well as steeper increases from baseline to post-SST levels, as compared to secure and avoidant children (Lujik, Saidjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Furthermore, three small studies (n ¼ 32 to 38) report children classified as D have higher post-SST levels than nondisorganized or securely attached children 15-30 min post-SST (Bernard & Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993), but the two large studies did not find differences between disorganized and non-disorganized children (Lujik, Saridjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
... In addition, two large study (n ¼ 106 to 360) found insecure resistant children had higher levels of cortisol post-SST, as well as steeper increases from baseline to post-SST levels, as compared to secure and avoidant children (Lujik, Saidjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Furthermore, three small studies (n ¼ 32 to 38) report children classified as D have higher post-SST levels than nondisorganized or securely attached children 15-30 min post-SST (Bernard & Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993), but the two large studies did not find differences between disorganized and non-disorganized children (Lujik, Saridjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Despite these mixed findings, attachment style likely influences children's emotional experience during separations from their primary caregiver and/or the sensitivity of the cortisol response to stressors. ...
Prenatal intimate partner violence exposure predicts infant biobehavioral regulation: Moderation by the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene – CORRIGENDUM - Cecilia Martinez-Torteya, Caleb J. Figge, Michelle A. Gilchrist, Maria Muzik, Anthony P. King, Matthew Sorenson
... Empirical studies have identified significant associations between insecure attachment, shyness and behavioral inhibition [19,20]. Nachmias and colleagues [19] explored the role of attachment in the relationship between behavioral inhibition and stress reactivity in a sample of 78 18-monthold children and their mothers. ...
... Findings supported the hypothesis that attachment security can moderate the effect of behavioral inhibition on the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical system which secretes cortisol, a stress hormone involved in response to physical and/or emotional stress. Similarly, Spangler and Schieche [20] reported that the activation of adrenocortical system was most prominent in infants with insecure attachment and high behavioural inhibition, demonstrating the role of secure attachment relationship as a social buffer against less adaptive temperamental dispositions. ...
Background
In recent years, researchers have begun to explore the implications of shyness for the psychosocial wellbeing of children and adolescents, exploring its association with internalizing problems. Research in an Italian context is hindered by the lack of a validated self-report measure of shyness. We report two studies aimed to assess the psychometric properties of an Italian translation of the Children’s Shyness Questionnaire (CSQ-it) and investigate its correlations with convergent and divergent constructs. The first study aimed to examine associations between CSQ-it and self-report measures of anxiety and somatic symptoms and attachment with parents and peers. The second study aimed to investigate its relations to internet addiction.
Methods
The self-report measures were completed by 550 participants in the first study and 131 participants in the second study. Parents provided information on their child’s problems. Psychometric properties were assessed by Cronbach’s alpha in both studies and by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis in Study 1. The relations between shyness and measures of internalizing problems and attachments were analyzed by correlational methods. In Study 2 a moderated mediation model tested the hypothesis that the relationship between shyness and internet addiction is mediated by somatic symptoms and that shyness moderates the relationship between somatic symptoms and internet addiction.
Results
The reliability and validity of the Italian Version of the Children’s Shyness Questionnaire were satisfactory. Results from confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the single-factor model of the questionnaire previously identified in North American and Chinese studies. There were significant correlations between shyness, anxious and somatic symptomatology, impaired psychosocial functioning and specific components of attachment relationships. In Study 2 the indirect effect of shyness on internet addiction through somatic symptoms was significant as well as significantly moderated for high shyness scores but not for low levels of shyness.
Conclusion
To our knowledge this is the first study that explored the psychometric proprieties of the Children’s Shyness Questionnaire in the Italian context. Findings demonstrated that this self-reported measure of shyness has sound psychometric properties and can be used as a sensitive and appropriate instrument for the assessment of shyness in children and adolescents.
... Two small studies (n ¼ 38 to 49) reported secure and insecure infants and toddlers had similar cortisol levels after the SST (Gunnar, Mangelsdorf, Larson, & Hertsgaard, 1989;Hertsgaard, Gunnar, Erickson, & Nachmias, 1995), while one small study (n ¼ 32) found higher cortisol 30 min post-SST among insecure children (Spangler & Grossman, 1993). In addition, two large study (n ¼ 106 to 360) found insecure resistant children had higher levels of cortisol post-SST, as well as steeper increases from baseline to post-SST levels, as compared to secure and avoidant children (Lujik, Saidjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Furthermore, three small studies (n ¼ 32 to 38) report children classified as D have higher post-SST levels than nondisorganized or securely attached children 15-30 min post-SST (Bernard & Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993), but the two large studies did not find differences between disorganized and non-disorganized children (Lujik, Saridjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
... In addition, two large study (n ¼ 106 to 360) found insecure resistant children had higher levels of cortisol post-SST, as well as steeper increases from baseline to post-SST levels, as compared to secure and avoidant children (Lujik, Saidjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Furthermore, three small studies (n ¼ 32 to 38) report children classified as D have higher post-SST levels than nondisorganized or securely attached children 15-30 min post-SST (Bernard & Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993), but the two large studies did not find differences between disorganized and non-disorganized children (Lujik, Saridjan, et al., 2010;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Despite these mixed findings, attachment style likely influences children's emotional experience during separations from their primary caregiver and/or the sensitivity of the cortisol response to stressors. ...
The ability to regulate stress is a critical developmental milestone of early childhood that involves a set of interconnected behavioral and physiological processes and is influenced by genetic and environmental stimuli. Prenatal exposure to traumatic stress and trauma, including intimate partner violence (IPV), increases risk for offspring biobehavioral regulation problems during childhood and adolescence. Although individual differences in susceptibility to prenatal stress have been largely unexplored, a handful of studies suggest children with specific genetic characteristics are most vulnerable to prenatal stress. We evaluated the brain-derived neurotrophic factor Val66Met gene ( BDNF ) as a moderator of the effect of prenatal IPV exposure on infant temperamental and cortisol regulation in response to a psychosocial challenge. Ninety-nine mother–infant dyads recruited from the community were assessed when infants (51% female) were 11 to 14 months. Maternal reports of IPV during pregnancy and infant temperament were obtained, and infant saliva was collected for genotyping and to assess cortisol reactivity (before and after the Strange Situation Task). Significant genetic moderation effects were found. Among infants with the BDNF Met allele, prenatal IPV predicted worse temperamental regulation and mobilization of the cortisol response, while controlling for infant postnatal exposure to IPV, other maternal traumatic experiences, and infant sex. However, prenatal IPV exposure was not associated with temperamental or cortisol outcomes among infant carriers of the Val/Val genotype. Findings are discussed in relation to prenatal programming and biological susceptibility to stress.
... Apart from the behavioral distress that children may display on transitioning to the CCC, physiological indications of stress, such as elevated cortisol levels and lowered respiratory sinus arrhythmia, have also been reported (Ahnert et al., 2004;Ahnert et al., 2021;Albers et al., 2016;Bernard et al., 2015). A direct connection between behavioral and physiological distress in infants has not been consistently found (Ahnert et al., 2004;Gunnar, 1989), with the relation being moderated by factors such as attachment security (Gunnar & Donzella, 2002;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Since stress may thus not always be reflected in children's behavior, an objective measurement of stress in infants is an important addition to behavioral observations. ...
Transitioning to an out-of-home child care setting has been shown to be a challenging event for young children. One of the physiological indicators of stress, cortisol secretion, has only been studied minimally in infants yet (e.g., Albers et al., 2016). In the current replication study we therefore followed 32 healthy infants (Mage = 11.59 weeks), their mothers, and their primary professional caregivers during the transition from home to the child care center. We found that on average (1) infants’ cortisol levels were significantly lower at mid-afternoon than mid-morning both at home and child care; (2) cortisol levels at home (both time-points) were significantly higher before transition than after transition; (3) the difference between cortisol levels at child care versus home showed a (non-significant) medium effect with higher levels at child care at both time-points; (4) individual cortisol patterns illustrated large variability between infants; and (5) three exploratory correlates of cortisol secretion at child care displayed a (non-significant) small to medium effect: infants who displayed a cortisol increase over the day scored lower on infant negative emotionality, and had mothers who scored lower on sensitivity and higher on separation anxiety. Larger studies are required, including multiple caregivers and various physiological measures.
... Multiple studies have demonstrated that it is difficult to elevate cortisol in young children when a parent with whom they have a secure attachment relationship is present. In contrast, infants in insecure relationships appear to have difficulty using their parent's presence to prevent cortisol increases to emotionally distressing events (Ahnert et al., 2004;Nachmias et al., 1996;Spangler and Schieche, 1998). Notably, infants with disordered/disorganized (i.e. ...
... Conversely, studies of social isolation in multiple species of rodents, which is accompanied by hyperadrenocorticism, have found decreases in prosocial behavior and increases in antisocial behaviors, including aggression and depressive symptoms (see Beery and Kaufer, 2015 for a review). Human research on social withdrawal has also found high cortisol levels to be linked to social reticence (Schmidt et al., 1997) and behavioral inhibition (Spangler, 1998) in young children. These findings suggest that both high and low cortisol reactivity profiles can have disruptive effects on efforts to maintain social homeostasis if there is a social utility deficit. ...
The concept of “social homeostasis”, introduced by Matthews and Tye in 2019, has provided a framework with which to consider our changing individual needs for social interaction, and the neurobiology underlying this system. This model was conceived as including detector systems, a control center with a setpoint, and effectors which allow us to seek out or avoid additional social contact. In this article, we review and theorize about the many different factors that might contribute to the setpoint of a person or animal, including individual, social, cultural, and other environmental factors. We conclude with a consideration of the empirical challenges of this exciting new model.
... In both human and non-human animals the quality of the care received from the caregiver has been shown to affect an individual's ability to use the attachment figure as a buffer against stress [25], leading to a dysregulation of the physiological response of both the autonomous nervous system and the hypotalamus-pituitary-axis to acute stressors [26]. For instance, children with insecure attachment patterns show higher cortisol reactivity during the SSP [27][28][29], as well as higher heart rate [28,30] and salivary alpha amylase [31], suggesting a greater activation of the sympathetic nervous system. Similarly, in adult humans, insecure attachment has been linked to primary hypertension [32], which may be predicted, among others, by parental warmth [33] and physiological reactivity to acute stress at young age [34]. ...
Simple Summary
The attachment bond that dogs form towards their owners shares similar features with the bond children form towards their caregivers. Insecurely attached children struggle to find support from their caregivers and therefore to regulate their own emotional response in times of distress. We aimed to investigate whether the quality of dog attachment to the owner may affect their physiological response to stress. We selected ten insecure and ten secure dogs from a sample of individuals who underwent a Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to assess their attachment pattern towards the owner. The SSP is specifically designed to progressively generate stress. We collected saliva samples before and after the test to measure cortisol concentrations, as an indicator of acute stress, as well as a hair sample to assess chronic stress. We also measured blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate and rectal temperature after the completion of the test. The results showed that salivary cortisol concentrations were higher in insecure dogs, particularly after the test. Heart rate also tended to be higher in insecure dogs. No difference in hair cortisol levels were found between secure and insecure dogs. Dogs’ physiological response to acute stress may be affected by the quality of the attachment to the owners.
Abstract
The quality of the attachment bond towards the caregiver may affect the dog’s physiological responses to stressful stimuli. This study aimed to measure chronic and acute physiological parameters of stress in ten securely and ten insecurely attached dogs. The twenty experimental subjects were selected from a sample of dogs that participated with their owners in the Strange Situation Procedure. Saliva samples were collected before (T0) and after (T1) the test. Blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and rectal temperature were measured after the test, only. At this time, a hair sample was also collected. RM ANOVA was used to analyse cortisol concentrations between secure and insecure dogs at T0 and T1. Mann–Whitney U test or T test were used for other physiological parameters. Insecure dogs had significant higher salivary cortisol concentrations than secure dogs at T1 (p = 0.024), but only a non-significant trend towards higher cortisol concentrations at T0 (p = 0.099). Post-test heart rate also tended to be higher in insecure compared to secure dogs (p = 0.077). No significant differences in hair cortisol concentration were found. The quality of attachment may affect the dog’s physiological response to acute stress, at least when related to separation from the caregiver. The effect of attachment on chronic stress requires further investigation.
... Some studies have demonstrated the hyperactivity of the HPA system and the associated higher levels of cortisol (Bernard and Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler and Grossmann, 1993), which would suggest that people with disorganized attachment show the highest HPA reactivity. However, other large studies have not confirmed this hypothesis, showing that the highest activity of the HPA system is presented by people classified as anxious-ambivalent (Luijk et al., 2010;Spangler and Schieche, 1998). However, there is some heterogeneity in the research methodology, for example in one of the above-cited studies, the shortened Strange Situation Procedure was used, which could lead to differences in classifying children to particular patterns of attachment. ...
... Some studies have demonstrated the hyperactivity of the HPA system and the associated higher levels of cortisol (Bernard and Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler and Grossmann, 1993), which would suggest that people with disorganized attachment show the highest HPA reactivity. However, other large studies have not confirmed this hypothesis, showing that the highest activity of the HPA system is presented by people classified as anxious-ambivalent (Luijk et al., 2010;Spangler and Schieche, 1998). However, there is some heterogeneity in the research methodology, for example in one of the above-cited studies, the shortened Strange Situation Procedure was used, which could lead to differences in classifying children to particular patterns of attachment. ...
... Some studies have demonstrated the hyperactivity of the HPA system and the associated higher levels of cortisol (Bernard and Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler and Grossmann, 1993), which would suggest that people with disorganized attachment show the highest HPA reactivity. However, other large studies have not confirmed this hypothesis, showing that the highest activity of the HPA system is presented by people classified as anxious-ambivalent (Luijk et al., 2010;Spangler and Schieche, 1998). However, there is some heterogeneity in the research methodology, for example in one of the above-cited studies, the shortened Strange Situation Procedure was used, which could lead to differences in classifying children to particular patterns of attachment. ...
... Some studies have demonstrated the hyperactivity of the HPA system and the associated higher levels of cortisol (Bernard and Dozier, 2010;Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Spangler and Grossmann, 1993), which would suggest that people with disorganized attachment show the highest HPA reactivity. However, other large studies have not confirmed this hypothesis, showing that the highest activity of the HPA system is presented by people classified as anxious-ambivalent (Luijk et al., 2010;Spangler and Schieche, 1998). However, there is some heterogeneity in the research methodology, for example in one of the above-cited studies, the shortened Strange Situation Procedure was used, which could lead to differences in classifying children to particular patterns of attachment. ...
This book examines the use of modern technologies in clinical psychological practice. It considers how we define attachment in an age where changes in technology and the COVID-19 pandemic have increased the prevalence of online contact in the process of diagnosis and psychological treatment.
Based on an attachment paradigm that is relatively unexplored, the book outlines how modern online contact influences mental health and development, along with the therapeutic relationship between client and professional. It discusses people’s relationships with new technologies, how relationships can be established using these technologies, and how these technologies affect professional relationships between psychologists and their clients, which they define as e-attachment. In the context of new technologies, the book draws on neurobiology and clinical psychology to consider mental health, social functioning, and emotional regulation.
Presenting both theory and examples from case studies, this cutting-edge book will be of great interest to researchers, academics, and post-graduate students in the fields of clinical psychology, psychotherapy, and mental health. Those also carrying out research into digital and online learning within the field of mental health will also benefit from this text.
Link: https://www.routledge.com/E-attachment-and-Online-Communication-The-Changing-Context-of-the-Clinical/Sitnik-Warchulska-Izydorczyk-Wajda/p/book/9781032116860
... Thus the avoidant style presents a mismatch between behavior and physiology. With respect to alterations in stress response associated with insecurity, an exaggerated adrenocortical response to stress occurs in toddlers who had the combination of insecure attachment and behavioral inhibition (Schieche & Spangler, 2005;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
Childhood adversity alters the relational world of the child and inhibits the development of secure attachment bonds. The purpose of this article is to survey recent evidence that attachment insecurity has the potential to impair physical health throughout the lifespan. It is proposed that attachment insecurity contributes to disease risk through a range of mechanisms which include (1) disturbances in arousal and recovery within physiological systems that respond to stress; (2) physiological links between the mediators of social relationships, stress, and immunity; (3) links between relationship style and various health behaviors; and (4) disease risk factors that serve as external regulators of dysphoric affect, such as nicotine and alcohol. The evidence for these mechanisms, particularly the evidence that has accumulated since the model was first proposed in 2000, is presented and discussed.
... The mothers were the infant's primary caretakers in all families except one.We obtained informed consent from the parents at each assessment period. For more details, see Spangler and Schieche (1998). At the age of 12 months, we observed mother-infant interaction during a 30-min competing demands free play session. ...
Most studies examining gene-environment effects on self-regulation focus on outcomes early childhood or adulthood. However, only a few studies investigate longitudinal effects during middle childhood and adolescence and compare two domains of early caregiving. In a longitudinal follow-up with a sample of N = 87, we studied the effects of differences in the DRD4 tandem repeat polymorphisms and two domains of early maternal caregiving quality on children’s personality development using Block’s California Child Q-Set (CCQ) at age six and age 12 and on problem behavior at ages six and seven. Early maternal regulation quality predicted later ego-resiliency and aggressiveness. In addition, significant gene-environment interactions revealed that children with the 7+ DRD4 tandem repeat polymorphism and poor maternal regulation quality in infancy showed lower scores in ego-resiliency and higher scores in ego-undercontrol and CCQ aggressiveness. In contrast, children who had experienced effective maternal regulation in infancy showed a comparable level in personality traits and problem behavior as the DRD4 7- group independent of the levels of maternal regulatory behavior. Similarly, longitudinal caregiving × DRD4 interactions were found for behavior problems in middle childhood, especially for oppositional-aggression, inattentive-hyperactivity, and social competence. Early caregiving effects were only found for maternal regulation quality, but not for maternal responsiveness. Effective early maternal regulation in infancy can moderate the negative effect of DRD4 7+ on children’s self-regulation in middle childhood and adolescence. However, maternal responsiveness has no comparable effects. It seems relevant to consider several dimensions of early caregiving and to also measure the environment in more detail in gene-environment studies.
... People with different attachment styles experience differently the same social situations (i.e., some people may perceive a stimulus as a pleasing one, while to others the same one would be a stressor). This sensitivity results in an increase or decrease of the cortisol levels after being exposed to the same situation; in particular people with any insecure attachment style report higher cortisol levels than secure people after have experienced the same stressor [5], [6]. Moreover, interaction between strangers that have the same attachment style leads to lower cortisol levels in both compared to interaction with strangers with a mismatch in attachment styles [7]. ...
When interacting with others in our everyday life, we prefer the company of those who share with us the same desire of closeness and intimacy (or lack thereof), since this determines if our interaction will be more o less pleasant. This sort of compatibility can be inferred by our innate attachment style. The attachment style represents our characteristic way of thinking, feeling and behaving in close relationship, and other than behaviourally, it can also affect us biologically via our hormonal dynamics. When we are looking how to enrich human-robot interaction (HRI), one potential solution could be enabling robots to understand their partners' attachment style, which could then improve the perception of their partners and help them behave in an adaptive manner during the interaction. We propose to use the relationship between the attachment style and the cortisol hormone, to endow the humanoid robot iCub with an internal cortisol inspired framework that allows it to infer participant's attachment style by the effect of the interaction on its cortisol levels (referred to as R-cortisol). In this work, we present our cognitive framework and its validation during the replication of a well-known paradigm on hormonal modulation in human-human interaction (HHI) - the Still Face paradigm.
... One of the key factors influencing children's stress coping strategies, and therefore their stress resilience, is their relationships with attachment figures. Secure attachment has been shown to be effective in the reduction or prevention of cortisol increases to exposure to stressors at the age 12-18 months old (Luijk et al., 2010;Nachmias et al., 1996;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Less information is available for older ages. ...
Despite substantial grounds for such research, the role of chronic exposure to stressors in the onset and aggravation of learning disabilities (LDs) is largely unexplored. In this review, we first consider the hormonal, (epi)genetic, and neurobiological mechanisms that might underlie the impact of adverse childhood experiences, a form of chronic stressors, on the onset of LDs. We then found that stress factors combined with feelings of inferiority, low self-esteem, and peer victimization could potentially further aggravate academic failures in children with LDs. Since effective evidence-based interventions for reducing chronic stress in children with LDs could improve their academic performance, consideration of the role of exposure to stressors in children with LDs has both theoretical and practical importance, especially when delivered in combination with academic interventions.
... How do these communications become internal expectations, understood as intentions? Why do infants in such secure relationships cry without cortisol output, whereas other infants do, as an indication of physiological distress (Schieche & Spangler, 2005;Spangler & Schieche, 1998)? How does the neo-cortex become more and more involved in meaning making of spoken language as the prime cultural tool (Bruner, 1977(Bruner, , 1990? ...
Human newborn infants are evolutionarily predisposed to communicate. Caretakers may interpret their signals, more or less correctly, as meaningful and intentional. Reliable responsiveness is the essence of the attachment system; appropriate and prompt responses to instant’s’ signals support secure quality of attachment. Other signals, if sensitively responded to, support curiosity for the world. From birth onward infants experience and learn whether their signals will be answered, and in what way, by whom, and when, thereby developing into their own culture. Videos from seven cultures, presented here, demonstrate the ubiquity of maternal responsiveness. They present a solid basis for future data from cultural and from biological anthropology. Carefully videotaped observations elucidate differences in meaning and function of sensitive caregiver–infant interactions for the emotional and cultural development of children in various cultures.
... Importantly, these findings, indicative of a hyper-reactive HPA axis, dovetail with the pattern observed in children and adolescents in the wake of severe physical or sexual abuse but not neglect (111,112). However, by far the largest populationbased Generation-R study comparing cortisol responses to the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) among 72 disorganized to 297 non-disorganized infants failed to confirm this pattern, rather showing that anxious-ambivalent infants exhibited the highest cortisol reactivity relative to other classifications [(113), see (114) for a second non-replication]. That said, although the Generation-R Study is one of the largest of its kind, presumably due to its population-based nature, there was a high proportion of disorganized infants who received a secondary secure classification, potentially suggesting that their disorganized status was less attributable to severe abuse or neglect [see (4,115,116)], though this also applied to studies which detected cortisol hyper-responsivity among disorganized infants (110). ...
Humans are strongly dependent upon social resources for allostasis and emotion regulation. This applies especially to early childhood because humans—as an altricial species—have a prolonged period of dependency on support and input from caregivers who typically act as sources of co-regulation. Accordingly, attachment theory proposes that the history and quality of early interactions with primary caregivers shape children's internal working models of attachment. In turn, these attachment models guide behavior, initially with the set goal of maintaining proximity to caregivers but eventually paving the way to more generalized mental representations of self and others. Mounting evidence in non-clinical populations suggests that these mental representations coincide with differential patterns of neural structure, function, and connectivity in a range of brain regions previously associated with emotional and cognitive capacities. What is currently lacking, however, is an evidence-based account of how early adverse attachment-related experiences and/or the emergence of attachment disorganization impact the developing brain. While work on early childhood adversities offers important insights, we propose that how these events become biologically embedded crucially hinges on the context of the child–caregiver attachment relationships in which the events take place. Our selective review distinguishes between direct social neuroscience research on disorganized attachment and indirect maltreatment-related research, converging on aberrant functioning in neurobiological systems subserving aversion, approach, emotion regulation, and mental state processing in the wake of severe attachment disruption. To account for heterogeneity of findings, we propose two distinct neurobiological phenotypes characterized by hyper- and hypo-arousal primarily deriving from the caregiver serving either as a threatening or as an insufficient source of co-regulation, respectively.
... The development of the stress response is affected by early attachment experiences and whether the attachment figure provides the secure base function during distress and threat. Also, as mentioned previously, a child's attachment security to a parent was found to moderate stress reactivity and predict the child's cortisol responses to the event [34,81]. It can be concluded that the quality of care received early in life appears to be important in the development and regulation of stress-related neuro-biological processes [82]. ...
... The development of the stress response is affected by early attachment experiences and whether the attachment figure provides the secure base function during distress and threat. Also, as mentioned previously, a child's attachment security to a parent was found to moderate stress reactivity and predict the child's cortisol responses to the event [34,81]. It can be concluded that the quality of care received early in life appears to be important in the development and regulation of stress-related neuro-biological processes [82]. ...
... Importantly, these findings, indicative of a hyper-reactive HPA axis, dovetail with the pattern observed in children and adolescents in the wake of severe physical or sexual abuse but not neglect (111,112). However, by far the largest populationbased Generation-R study comparing cortisol responses to the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) among 72 disorganized to 297 non-disorganized infants failed to confirm this pattern, rather showing that anxious-ambivalent infants exhibited the highest cortisol reactivity relative to other classifications [(113), see (114) for a second non-replication]. That said, although the Generation-R Study is one of the largest of its kind, presumably due to its population-based nature, there was a high proportion of disorganized infants who received a secondary secure classification, potentially suggesting that their disorganized status was less attributable to severe abuse or neglect [see (4,115,116)], though this also applied to studies which detected cortisol hyper-responsivity among disorganized infants (110). ...
Humans are strongly dependent upon social resources for allostasis and emotion regulation. This applies especially to early childhood because humans – as an altricial species – have a prolonged period of dependency on support and input from caregivers who typically act as sources of co-regulation. Accordingly, attachment theory proposes that the history and quality of early interactions with primary caregivers shape children’s internal working models of attachment. In turn, these working models guide behavior, initially with the set goal of maintaining proximity to caregivers, but eventually paving the way to more generalized mental representations of self and others. Mounting evidence in nonclinical populations suggests that these mental representations coincide with differential patterns of neural structure, function, and connectivity in a range of brain regions previously associated with emotional and cognitive capacities. What is currently lacking, however, is an evidence-based account of how early adverse attachment-related experiences and/or the emergence of attachment disorganization impact the developing brain. While work on early childhood adversities offers important indications, we propose that how these events become biologically embedded crucially hinges on the context of the child-caregiver attachment relationships in which the events take place. Our selective review distinguishes between direct social neuroscience research on disorganized attachment and indirect maltreatment-related research, converging on aberrant functioning in neurobiological systems subserving processing of aversion, approach, emotion regulation, and mental states in the wake of severe attachment disruption. To account for the heterogeneity of findings, we propose two distinct neurobiological phenotypes characterized by hyper- and hypo-arousal deriving, among others, from the caregiver serving either as a threatening or as an insufficient source of co-regulation, respectively.
... The diurnal rhythm is characterized by a peak in cortisol levels in the morning, followed by a decline throughout the day (Larson, White, Cochran, Donzella, & Gunnar, 1998 ). Both diurnal cortisol and cortisol reactivity to stressors have been found to be aff ected by parental sensitivity and attachment quality Pendry & Adam, 2007 ;Schieche & Spangler, 2005 ;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993 ;Spangler, & Schieche, 1998 ;van Bakel & Riksen-Walraven, 2004 ). ...
... In certain contexts CORT levels are elevated in infants who are insecurely attached and/or who have intrusive caregivers (659,660). It would not be surprising to learn that these high-risk mothers have a history of an over-responsive HPA axis-much has been described for "maternally deprived" rat pups and motherless or peer-reared monkeys. ...
... In contrast, attachment insecurity contributes to misrepresentation of healthy emotional experience, unconscious suppression of emotions and poor coping skills. The results of the research in the field of Neuropsychology show that the release of cortisol (stress hormone) has a relationship with the security of the attachment, thus insecurely attached individuals have chronically high levels of cortisol, but for securely attached individual's cortisol is released and fades off quickly, indicating the ability to deal with anxiety (Spangler, Schieche, 1998). ...
... Among higherinhibited children, those who were insecurely attached had higher cortisol levels than children securely attached to their mothers. The same pattern was revealed using the maternal questionnaire to measure a child' s inhibition (Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
Under conditions of suboptimal parental care, children with specific temperamental features have been shown to be especially vulnerable to the effects of stress. Most studies of temperamentally vulnerable children have been conducted using parental questionnaires, which are unfortunately not completely objective. An alternative approach, the use of objective methods for assessing temperament in childhood, can and should be used to study the impact of poor parenting quality on children's stress levels, an important factor in child development. Although studies using such objective methods exist, they are quite rare. A PubMed search identified twelve articles reviewed here. Existing data indicate that, in general, higher basal cortisol and cortisol stress response are associated with “reactive” temperament: shyness, fearfulness, behavioral inhibition, and negative affectivity. Furthermore, child temperament interacts with the quality of parental care to predict cortisol levels in early childhood. Accordingly, in the context of inadequate parental care, temperamentally vulnerable children with “reactive” temperaments are particularly at risk for negative effects of stress. Studies of stress‐by‐parental‐care‐interactions are essential for preventing long‐term mental problems and problems with physical health that could occur in temperamentally vulnerable children who receive suboptimal parental care.
... Als Folge daraus richten unsicher-ambivalent gebundene Kinder eine erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit auf ihre Bindungspersonen bei gleichzeitig aggressivem Verhalten (Cassidy & Berlin, 1994). Auf neurobiologischer Ebene reagieren diese Kinder mit einer erhöhten hormonellen und kardiovaskulären Stressreaktion (Smith, Woodhouse, Clark & Skowron, 2016;Spangler & Schieche, 1998) bei gleichzeitig erhöhter Oxytocin-Produktion (Uvnäs Moberg., 2016, S. 122-126). ...
Children and young people with a need for support in their social-emotional development pose challenges to teachers of all types of schools in inclusive education. It is all the more astonishing that there is no educational research on pedagogy in the case of socio-emotional disorders, that teaching concepts only exist in their beginnings and that only general and specific teaching principles are used in teaching these students. A recognised predictor for the academic success of these children and adolescents is the quality of the attachment relationship with the teacher. Findings from the trust and attachment theories point to the principle of reliability as an elementary component of the relationship as presented in the following article.
... Activation of secure working models of attachment supports emotional and physiological regulations in response to stress and everyday situations. Insecure attachment working models, in contrast, signal dysregulation in organic conditions and affective processes that often lead to the development of mental and physical symptoms (Fonagy, Gergely, Jurist, & Target, 2002;Fonagy & Target, 2005;Gunnar, Broderson, Nachmias, Buss, & Rigatuso, 1996;Mikulincer, Shaver, & Pereg, 2003;Schore, 2003;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). ...
Using a sample of 210 college students affected by parental separation, this study investigated how perceived parental conflict and attachment anxiety jointly predicted somatic symptoms in adult children affected by parental separation. The participants responded to a computer-based survey assessing perceived parental conflict, attachment anxiety, and somatic symptoms. The results indicated that parental conflict was associated with attachment anxiety and somatic symptoms, and attachment anxiety was associated with somatic symptoms. Moreover, multivariate regression analysis showed a pattern of full mediation suggesting a pathway from parental conflict to somatic symptoms through the individual differences in attachment anxiety. Targeting anxious working models of attachment in children of parental separation may protect and minimize the vulnerability of developing somatic symptoms resulting from exposure to parental conflict.
... An early investigation showed that insecure infants had greater increases in cortisol from baseline to post-Strange Situation, and that this effect was most pronounced among disorganised children (Spangler and Grossmann, 1993). Subsequent studies found the same increased cortisol response to the Strange Situation among insecure infants, however only in those who were also rated high on inhibited temperament (Nachmias, et al., 1996;Spangler and Schieche, 1998). A more recent, albeit small study found that disorganised infants had a lower baseline level of cortisol than their organised counterparts, and a greater increase in cortisol in response to the Strange Situation (Bernard and Dozier, 2010). ...
From its origins, human attachment has always been viewed as a primary, biologically-based phenomenon with strong evolutionary roots. The last few decades have seen a large increase in research studies from developmental science and neighbouring disciplines that attest the role of biology in attachment processes. This review aims to provide a concise and up-to-date summary of research on the biological bases of attachment throughout the lifespan. We review the role of genetics, physiology ‒ focusing on oxytocin and cortisol ‒ and brain mechanisms that underlie attachment behaviour and its consequences. Findings are complex in that they often do not apply equally to all patterns of attachment, to all ages, or all temperament styles, among other factors. In addition, some important evidence is indirect, coming from studies that investigate the impact of variations in caregiving quality, such as differences in maltreatment and separation from caregiving figures, and on biology, and vice versa, rather than looking at differences in attachment per se, which complicates their interpretation. Implications for practice are raised throughout.
... Attachment theory (Bowlby, 1969;Bowlby, 1973) provides a framework for the understanding of affect regulation as infants' experiences with their caregivers influence individual patterns and strategies of affect regulation (Mikulincer, Shaver, & Pereg, 2003). Research numerously showed the importance of early maternal sensitivity for the development of a secure attachment relationship (e.g., Ainsworth et al., 1978;Grossmann, Grossmann, Spangler, Suess, & Unzner, 1985), which is associated with adaptive behavioral and emotional regulation strategies (Cassidy, 1994;Spangler & Schieche, 1998;Spangler & Zimmermann, 1999;Vondra, Shaw, Swearingen, Cohen, & Owens, 2001). Particularly in the first year of life, infants rely on their caregivers to help them regulate their arousal and emotions, which was also shown on the level of infants' biobehavioral regulation (Spangler et al., 1994). ...
Daily interactions with their caregivers build an important proximal environment for children. These early experiences shape children’s internal working model, comprising mental representations that guide future expectations and behavior. Moreover, early positive relationships are considered as a source of resilience for the child and his/her future life. It is very relevant to identify risk and protective factors for sensitive caregiving, especially for families who are highly burdened and at risk to show insensitive caregiving. Importantly, as parent-child interactions have a dyadic nature, also factors of the child should be taken into account when determinants of parenting behavior are examined. The present study analyzed psychosocial family risk, parenting stress, and children’s temperamental disposition as determinants of three dimensions of parenting behavior in the infant-toddler period in a sample including a substantial proportion of high-risk families. Furthermore, the effect of situational demand on parenting behavior was explored. Additionally, the development of three dimensions of children’s temperament in the context of family risk and parents’ parenting stress was investigated, and the effect of parents’ behavior on their children’s temperament development was analyzed. The German Development Study, a cooperative project of four research groups, has a sequential cohort design with children from two age cohorts and data assessed at two measurement points, which were about seven months apart. Taking data from a pre-assessment in which 21 distal and proximal risk factors were assessed into account, low-, medium-, and high-risk families were selected for the study. At wave 1, the sample of the German Development Study consisted of 197 children at the ages of 12 and 19 months in the younger and the older cohort, respectively, and their primary caregivers. At both waves, data assessment was conducted during home visits which followed an equivalent semi-structured procedure. Parenting behavior was assessed by two videotaped parent-child interactions, a free play situation and a structured situation, which put higher demands on the parent-child dyad. Child temperament, parenting stress, and psychosocial risk were assessed by parent report questionnaire. Our results showed that when a cut-off-score of four risk factors in the family’s life was reached, maternal responsivity was significantly lowered whereas maternal intrusiveness was significantly heightened. Interestingly, when distal and proximal risk factors were considered separately, analyses revealed that mainly distal risk factors were predictive of lower parenting quality. Results regarding the effect of parenting stress on parenting behavior were partly surprising as mothers’ stress experience due to personal restrictions was related to higher parenting quality. Furthermore, besides child temperament being influenced by parenting behavior, we mainly found parenting behavior to be influenced by child temperament. Interestingly, the effect of child temperament on parenting behavior was partly moderated by family’s risk exposure: Children’s negative affectivity predicted higher maternal responsivity in low-risk families, but lower maternal responsivity in high-risk families. Additionally, children’s effortful control predicted higher maternal sensitivity in the context of a given child-related (negative affectivity) or environmental risk (distal risk). Moreover, an interplay between the temperament dimensions negative affectivity and effortful control and the parenting dimension responsivity was found: In the context of high maternal responsivity, high negative affectivity predicted high effortful control, showing how external regulation (maternal responsivity) fosters internal regulation (effortful control). Besides interindividual differences in parenting behavior, also intraindividual differences were found: Particularly when mothers reported high child-related parenting stress, their parenting quality decreased when the situational demands of the mother-child interaction increased. Finally, regarding the effect of family risk on children’s temperament, results revealed more difficult temperamental characteristics under risk exposure, particularly in boys. Moreover, also parenting stress was found to be related to difficult temperament, particularly mothers’ stress experienced as feelings of incompetence in regard to parenting: Maternal feelings of incompetence predicted regulative and reactive aspects of child temperament. Our findings indicate that high-risk families with children who bring along demanding characteristics, such as regulatory problems, should be of special interest regarding prevention and intervention programs. As negative effects of risk on parenting behavior and children’s temperament had already emerged at the end of infants’ first year of life, these programs should start as early as possible, in order to prevent families from a consolidation of negative parenting behaviors and difficult child characteristics mutually enhancing each other.
... These inconsistent findings are probably due to a number of issues, including sample size, how researchers chose to examine attachment effects, how many saliva samples were collected, at what point the saliva sample was collected, and the analysis strategy used to model cortisol reactivity. For instance, attachment classifications have frequently been collapsed into secure and insecure classifications (Beijers et al., 2013;Frigerio et al., 2009;Gunnar et al., 1996;Nachmias et al., 1996), whereas others have compared infants with organized (ABC) versus disorganized (D) attachments (Bernard & Dozier, 2010;Luijk et al., 2010), or considered each of the different attachment classifications separately for A (avoidant), B (secure), C (resistant), and D (disorganized) (Hertsgaard, Gunnar, Erickson, & Nachmias, 1995;Luijk et al., 2010;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993;Spangler & Schieche, 1998). Further, how studies assess and analyze cortisol varies considerably, with some using only a single post-SSP cortisol sample (Hertsgaard et al., 1995;Nachmias et al., 1996), others calculating change scores between pre-and post-SSP levels (Beijers et al., 2013;Gunnar et al., 1996;Luijk et al., 2010;Spangler & Grossmann, 1993), and still others, using individual pre-and post-SSP cortisol levels as a repeated factor of time in analyses (Bernard & Dozier, 2010;Gunnar, Mangelsdorf, Larson, & Hertsgaard, 1989). ...
Attachment security is theorized to shape stress reactivity, but extant work has failed to find consistent links between attachment security to mothers and infant cortisol reactivity. We examined family configurations of infant-mother and infant-father attachment security in relation to infant cortisol reactivity. One-year old infants (N = 180) participated in the Strange Situation with mothers and fathers in two counterbalanced lab visits, one month apart (12 and 13 months). Infants with secure attachments only to their fathers and not their mothers had higher cortisol levels than infants with a secure attachment to mother and also exhibited a blunted cortisol response (high at baseline and then a decrease after stress). Results suggest that a secure attachment to father may not be enough to reduce infant stress reactivity when the infant-mother attachment is insecure, and future research is needed to uncover the family dynamics that underlie different family configurations of attachment security.
... If activation of the HPA axis during familiarization mediates its effect on LTM formation, maternal presence may have blocked familiarization's facilitating effects by buffering this stress response. Caregivers regulate a developing animal's endocrine and behavioral responses to threat (Gunnar & Donzella, 2002;Gunnar, Hostinar, Sanchez, Tottenham, & Sullivan, 2015;, and several studies have demonstrated that maternal presence alleviates infant stress responses to isolation (Hostinar, Johnson, & Gunnar, 2015;Spangler & Schieche, 1998;Stanton & Levine, 1985). For example, in one study, rat pups (P12, P16, P20) were maternally deprived for 24 hr (Stanton, Wallstrom, & Levine, 1987). ...
Behavioral tagging, which is well-established in adults, has recently been shown to also occur in infants. Interestingly, while familiarizing the novel experience abolishes behavioral tagging in adults, it appears to be without effect in infants. Familiarization, at least in infants, may act as an experience-dependent switch, closing the hippocampal critical period and thus accelerating the maturation of the hippocampus. In this study, infant (i.e., Postnatal Day 17) rats were placed in a context and shocked. Infants familiarized to an open field arena for 30 min the day before exhibited enhanced retention when tested 1 day later (Experiments 1 and 2). While brief exploration of an open field soon before learning (i.e., the behavioral tagging procedure) resulted in better memory when rats were tested 1, but not 3, days later, familiarized rats had enhanced long-term memory (LTM) at both intervals (Experiment 3). Furthermore, familiarization, but not brief open field exposure, enhanced LTM for a nonhippocampal task (Experiment 4), suggesting that familiarization works through a different mechanism compared with behavioral tagging. Specifically, these results suggest that familiarization results in broader changes to the emotional learning and memory system rather than the hippocampus alone. Further investigation revealed that the effect of familiarization on LTM formation was mediated by isolation, rather than contextual novelty (Experiments 5 and 6), and consistent with this notion, maternal presence during familiarization blocked the enhancements in LTM (Experiment 7). Overall, these findings suggest that isolation during infancy may regulate the maturation of the emotional learning system. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
... For humans, there is no clearly defined period of parent-independent stress hyporesponsivity as there is in the rodent. Rather, the buffering of fear behaviors and stress responding may occur during the latter part of phase 1 and into phase 2. For example, several stressors encountered when parents are absent (such as novel events and approach by a stranger) do produce elevations in salivary cortisol levels in children (Nachmias et al. 1996, Spangler & Schieche 1998. However, parental stimuli, such as touch, can reduce the child's HPA axis response to psychosocial stressors, as seen in the still-face procedure during phase 1 (Feldman et al. 2010) or in child care during phase 2 (Ahnert et al. 2004). ...
Children's development is largely dependent on caregiving; when caregiving is disrupted, children are at increased risk for numerous poor outcomes, in particular psychopathology. Therefore, determining how caregivers regulate children's affective neurobiology is essential for understanding psychopathology etiology and prevention. Much of the research on affective functioning uses fear learning to map maturation trajectories, with both rodent and human studies contributing knowledge. Nonetheless, as no standard framework exists through which to interpret developmental effects across species, research often remains siloed, thus contributing to the current therapeutic impasse. Here, we propose a developmental ecology framework that attempts to understand fear in the ecological context of the child: their relationship with their parent. By referring to developmental goals that are shared across species (to attach to, then, ultimately, separate from the parent), this framework provides a common grounding from which fear systems and their dysfunction can be understood, thus advancing research on psychopathologies and their treatment.
Background
Insecure attachment (IA) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are discussed as risk factors for increased alcohol intake and the development of alcoholism.
Methods
Among a sample of 517 consecutively admitted German inpatients with alcohol dependence we investigated the contribution of IA to alcoholism phenotypes, taking into consideration comorbid ADHD.
Results
IA was significantly associated with increased alcohol consumption, increased frequency of withdrawal symptoms, increased frequency of physical or psychological problems that are likely to have been worsened by alcohol, and reduced social activities because of alcohol use. ADHD has no significant effect on these parameters.
Conclusions
IA developed as a result of social interactions during childhood long before alcohol dependence. The results point to an important effect of IA on the severity and acceleration of alcohol dependence. Therefore, it might be helpful to improve efforts in primary prevention and psychotherapy of alcohol dependence by considering the specific needs of subjects with an IA.
We tested a conceptual model examining associations between prenatal substance exposure and adolescent cortisol reactivity profiles in response to an acute social evaluative stressor. We included cortisol reactivity in infancy, and direct and interactive effects of early‐life adversity and parenting behaviors (sensitivity, harshness) from infancy to early school age on adolescent cortisol reactivity profiles in model testing. Participants were 216 families (51% female children; 116 cocaine‐exposed) recruited at birth, oversampled for prenatal substance exposure, and assessed from infancy to early adolescence (EA). Majority of participants self‐identified as Black (72% mothers, 57.2% adolescents), and caregivers were primarily from low‐income families (76%), were single (86%), and had high school or below education (70%) at recruitment. Latent profile analyses identified three cortisol reactivity patterns including elevated (20.4%), moderate (63.1%), and blunted (16.5%) reactivity groups. Prenatal tobacco exposure was associated with higher likelihood of membership in the elevated reactivity compared to the moderate reactivity group. Higher caregiver sensitivity in early life was associated with lower likelihood of membership in the elevated reactivity group. Prenatal cocaine exposure was associated with higher maternal harshness. Interaction effects among early‐life adversity and parenting indicated that caregiver sensitivity buffered, and harshness exacerbated, the likelihood that high early adversity would be associated with the elevated and blunted reactivity groups. Results highlight the potential importance of prenatal alcohol and tobacco exposure for cortisol reactivity and the role of parenting as exacerbating or buffering the impact of early‐life adversity on adolescent stress response.
Zusammenfassung
Immer mehr Kinder zeigen bereits in der frühen Kindheit Anzeichen von Verhaltensauffälligkeiten und Dysregulationen. Es wird ein Einfluss der pränatalen Bindung der Schwangeren zu ihrem ungeborenen Kind sowie ihres peripartalen Wohlbefindens angenommen. In einer prospektiven Studie an 161 Erstgebärenden wurde über standardisierte Fragebögen im dritten Trimenon und 3 Wochen, 6 Monate und 18 Monate postpartum die pränatale Bindung der Mutter zum Kind, den maternalen Bindungsstil, die Bindung in der Paarbeziehung und die prä- und postpartale Depressivität, sowie Entwicklungsauffälligkeiten des Kindes im Alter von 18 Monaten erfasst. Im allgemeinen linearen Modell (ALM) waren eine länger vorliegende prä- und postpartale Depressivität der Mutter sowie Anzeichen einer unsicheren pränatalen Bindung zum Kind mit einer höheren Rate an kindlichen Verhaltensauffälligkeiten assoziiert. Die Befunde untermauern die Bedeutung der frühzeitigen Wahrnehmung von Depressivität bei Frauen während und nach der Schwangerschaft durch medizinische Fachkräfte und der Einleitung von entsprechenden Hilfen, um die Häufigkeit kindlicher Verhaltensauffälligkeiten zu reduzieren.
Although many studies have documented associations between insecure attachment and psychopathology, attachment may not confer risk for psychopathology independently, but rather through its interaction with emotional, social, and biological factors. Understanding the variables through which attachment may lead to psychopathology is therefore important. Within this domain of research, the role of physiological factors is poorly investigated. What are the relevant domains and why, when, or for whom do they influence mental disorders relating to attachment? The current systematic review aims to answer these questions. Results reveal that physiological indices of emotional regulation play a role in explaining and/or determining the relationship between attachment and psychopathology. Specifically: (1) combined with insecure attachment, higher skin conductance level (SCL), lower cardiac slowing, and respiratory sinus arrhythmia modulation (RSA) contribute to different psychopathological indicators and behavioral/psychological dysfunctions, although the latter predicts a contradictory pattern of findings; (2) insecure-avoidant attachment is more consistently linked with stress and emotional dysregulation when combined with RSA, while anxious attachment confers risk of depressive symptoms when combined with SCL. We concluded our discussion of the results of seven studies by outlining a plan to move the field forward. We discuss the quality of the assessment, methodological limitations, and future directions, highlighting the need to extend the research to clinical samples.
Children make up over half of the world's migrants and refugees and face a multitude of traumatic experiences prior to, during, and following migration. Here, we focus on migrant children emigrating from Mexico and Central America to the United States and review trauma related to migration, as well as its implications for the mental health of migrant and refugee children. We then draw upon the early adversity literature to highlight potential behavioral and neurobiological sequalae of migration‐related trauma exposure, focusing on attachment, emotion regulation, and fear learning and extinction as transdiagnostic mechanisms underlying the development of internalizing and externalizing symptomatology following early‐life adversity. This review underscores the need for interdisciplinary efforts to both mitigate the effects of trauma faced by migrant and refugee youth emigrating from Mexico and Central America and, of primary importance, to prevent child exposure to trauma in the context of migration. Thus, we conclude by outlining policy recommendations aimed at improving the mental health of migrant and refugee youth.
Measurement of salivary cortisol is a practical and non-invasive tool for studying stress reactivity to various types of stressors even in young infants. Whereas studies using physical stressors during the first months of life have found robust cortisol responses to painful stimuli, research with older infants using psychological stressors (e.g., parental separation) has produced mixed findings, limiting our understanding of potential developmental changes in cortisol reactivity across infancy. In the present study, we used meta-analysis to systematically investigate whether psychological stressor paradigms are associated with measurable cortisol responses in infants under 18 months of age and whether the magnitude of the responses is moderated by the type of psychological stressor (i.e., separation, frustration, novelty, or disruption of parental interaction), infant age, and other potential moderators. Across 47 studies (N = 4095, age range: 3-18 months), we found that commonly used psychological stressor paradigms are associated with a small (Hedges' g = .11) increase in salivary cortisol levels in typically developing infants. Stressor type moderated the effect sizes, and when effect sizes in each category were analyzed separately, only the separation studies were associated with a consistent increase in cortisol following the stressor. Age did not moderate the effect sizes either in the full set of studies or within the separate stressor types. These meta-analytic results indicate that the normative cortisol response to psychological stressors across infancy is small and emphasize the need for standardized stressor paradigms to assess cortisol responses systematically across infancy.
The chapter presents a comparative report on interventions for fostercare-families (n = 50) and non fostercare-Families (n = 50) in a child guidance clinic. Fostercare families report more attachment and trauma related themes, fostercare children showed significantly more behaviour problems (SDQ), foster families need significantly more intervention sessions and the clinical work needs more collaboration with other professionals in the helping network. Ideas about treatment are presented.
The authors note a contradiction between empirical findings and the dismissive conclusion of the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (FMFASWY) that the treatment of children in early day care will not affect their relationship to their mother or entail any serious damage for their future. They use this contradiction as an opportunity to discuss the social function of early childhood socialization in day care. They come to the impression that the FMFASWY, in its assessment of research on day-care centers, was also intuitively guided by sociopolitical interests insofar as the emergence of a social character satisfying current social requirements is favored more by primary socialization in day care than in families.
A total of 39 children, classified in Ainsworth's Strange Situation at 12 and 18 months of age with their mothers and fathers, were observed in play groups and given a cartoon-based social perception test at 5 years of age. Children with anxious attachment histories (primarily avoidant in this sample) differed from those with secure histories on a number of single variables, and behavioural profiles based on combinations of variables showed strong significant differences in quality of play, conflict resolution, and problem behaviours. Measures of play competence, conflict resolution, and behaviour problems were significantly related to infant-mother attachment for girls, but not for boys. Overall competence, however, was significantly related to attachment to the mother for both boys and girls. Children with anxious attachment histories also showed misperceptions of cartoon stimuli, more often perceiving negative intentions than children with secure histories. Between-group differences were notably stronger using classifications with mothers than classifications with fathers. However, effects based on combined attachment information with both mother and father were more powerful for some variables.
Makes explicit a reconceptualization of the nature of emotion that over the past decade has fostered the study of emotion regulation. In the past, emotions were considered to be feeling states indexed by behavioral expressions: now, emotions are considered to be processes of establishing, maintaining, or disrupting the relation between the organism and the environment on matters of significance to the person. When emotions were conceptualized in the traditional way as feelings, emotion regulation centered on ego-defense mechanisms and display rules. The former was difficult to test; the latter was narrow in scope. By contrast, the notion of emotions as relational processes has shifted interest to the study of person/environment transactions in the elicitations of emotion and to the functions of action tendencies, emotional "expressions," language, and behavioral coping mechanisms. The article also treats the importance of affect in the continuity of self-development by documenting the impressive stability of at least two emotional dispositions: irritability and inhibition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Examined the relations among adrenocortical stress reactivity, infant emotional or proneness-to-distress temperament, and quality of attachment in 66 infants tested at 9 and at 13 months. Performed the Louisville Temperament Assessment at 9 months and conducted the Strange Situation at 13 months. Adrenocortical activity was not associated with attachment classifications. Emotional temperament at 9 months was strongly correlated with emotional temperament at 13 months. There was also evidence that at both ages infants who were more prone to distress experienced greater increases in adrenocortical activity during the laboratory tests. Significantly, however, although both the Louisville Temperament Assessment and the Strange Situation involve maternal separation (a potent stimulant of the adrenocortical system in nonhuman primate infants), we noted only small elevations in cortisol, and these elevations were significant only at 9 months.
About a decade ago, the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI; C. George, N. Kaplan, & M. Main, 1985) was developed to explore parents' mental representations of attachment as manifested in language during discourse of childhood experiences. The AAI was intended to predict the quality of the infant-parent attachment relationship, as observed in the Ainsworth Strange Situation, and to predict parents' responsiveness to their infants' attachment signals. The current meta-analysis examined the available evidence with respect to these predictive validity issues. In regard to the 1st issue, the 18 available samples (N = 854) showed a combined effect size of 1.06 in the expected direction for the secure vs. insecure split. For a portion of the studies, the percentage of correspondence between parents' mental representation of attachment and infants' attachment security could be computed (the resulting percentage was 75%; kappa = .49, n = 661). Concerning the 2nd issue, the 10 samples (N = 389) that were retrieved showed a combined effect size of .72 in the expected direction. According to conventional criteria, the effect sizes are large. It was concluded that although the predictive validity of the AAI is a replicated fact, there is only partial knowledge of how attachment representations are transmitted (the transmission gap).
Attachment research has shown the emergence of individual differences in the security of infant-mother attachment during the first year of life as well as their importance for later social-emotional development. A biobehavioral perspective may help settle disagreements about the validity and interpretation of 12-month-old infants' different behavioral patterns of attachment assessed by Ainsworth's Strange Situation. It was shown that, despite less overt distress in insecure-avoidant infants after short separations from the mother, overall cardiac measures indicate arousal patterns similar to the secure infants during separation. However, differences in cardiac response emerged with regard to object versus person orientation during reunion. Additionally, findings of increased cortisol in both insecure-avoidant and disorganized infants support the theoretical interpretation that these infants, in contrast to secure infants, lack an appropriate coping strategy.
The role of the mother-toddler attachment relationship in moderating the relations between behavioral inhibition and changes in salivary cortisol levels in response to novel events was examined in 77 18-month-olds. Behavioral inhibition was determined by observing toddler inhibition of approach to several novel events. Attachment security to mother was assessed using the Ainsworth Strange Situation. Changes in salivary cortisol were used to index activity of the stress-sensitive hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) system. In addition, toddler coping behaviors and the behaviors used by mothers to help toddlers manage novel events were examined. Elevations in cortisol were found only for inhibited toddlers in insecure attachment relationships. Mothers in these relationships appeared to interfere with their toddlers' coping efforts. These results are discussed in the context of a coping model of the relations between temperament and stress reactivity.
This meta-analysis included 66 studies (N = 4,176) on parental antecedents of attachment security. The question addressed was whether maternal sensitivity is associated with infant attachment security, and what the strength of this relation is. It was hypothesized that studies more similar to Ainsworth's Baltimore study (Ainsworth, Blehar, Waters, & Wall, 1978) would show stronger associations than studies diverging from this pioneering study. To create conceptually homogeneous sets of studies, experts divided the studies into 9 groups with similar constructs and measures of parenting. For each domain, a meta-analysis was performed to describe the central tendency, variability, and relevant moderators. After correction for attenuation, the 21 studies (N = 1,099) in which the Strange Situation procedure in nonclinical samples was used, as well as preceding or concurrent observational sensitivity measures, showed a combined effect size of r(1,097) = .24. According to Cohen's (1988) conventional criteria, the association is moderately strong. It is concluded that in normal settings sensitivity is an important but not exclusive condition of attachment security. Several other dimensions of parenting are identified as playing an equally important role. In attachment theory, a move to the contextual level is required to interpret the complex transactions between context and sensitivity in less stable and more stressful settings, and to pay more attention to nonshared environmental influences.
Examined the relations among adrenocortical stress reactivity, infant emotional or proneness-to-distress temperament, and quality of attachment in 66 infants tested at 9 and at 13 months. Performed the Louisville Temperament Assessment at 9 months and conducted the Strange Situation at 13 months. Adrenocortical activity was not associated with attachment classifications. Emotional temperament at 9 months was strongly correlated with emotional temperament at 13 months. There was also evidence that at both ages infants who were more prone to distress experienced greater increases in adrenocortical activity during the laboratory tests. Significantly, however, although both the Louisville Temperament Assessment and the Strange Situation involve maternal separation (a potent stimulant of the adrenocortical system in nonhuman primate infants), we noted only small elevations in cortisol, and these elevations were significant only at 9 months.
Fourty-nine 12 months old children and their mothers were videotaped in Ainsworth's Strange Situation. Fourty-six of them were videotaped again in the same situation at 18 months with their fathers. Quality of attachment was determined by using Ainsworth's criteria. Fewer children had 'secure' relationships to their parents than in comparable U.S. samples. There was no correlation between infant-mother and infant-father quality of attachment relationship. The results are discussed in terms of parental attempts to cope with cultural demands imposed on them. These specific cultural demands may frequently interfere with the establishment of a securely attached relationship. On the other hand, they may be only transitory and appropriate from an adaptation to culture-specific expectancies point of view.
Attachment theory is based in part on biological considerations concerned with the selective forces that probably acted in our environment of evolutionary adaptedness. This functional approach poses questions seldom addressed by developmentalists – for instance why are humans so constructed that particular childhood experiences have particular outcomes? Today much behaviour is directed towards goals other than the maximisation of inclusive fitness. This fact poses a number of questions about the relations between biological and cultural desiderata and the methods for assessing attachment. Finally, the relations of biological and cultural desiderata to the individual desideratum of psychological well-being are considered.Copyright © 1990 S. Karger AG, Basel
The aim of this study was to assess individual and social antecedents of attachment security and attachment disorganization of infants as assessed by the Strange Situation. Observations from two longitudinal studies, with a parallel assessment schedule yielding a total sample of 88 infant-mother pairs, formed the database of the study. Newborn behavioral organization, in terms of orienting ability and regulation of state, and maternal sensitivity assessed several times during the infant's first year were used to predict the security of infant-mother attachment and the status of disorganization of attachment behavior strategies at the age of 12 months. Whereas attachment security was significantly associated only with maternal sensitivity, the status of disorganization was only predicted by newborn behavioral organization. The findings are discussed with respect to specific assumptions about individual and social contribution to the development of infant-mother attachment on the background of maternal attachment representation.
Seventy-three 18-month-olds were tested in the Ainsworth Strange Situation. These children were a subset of 83 infants tested at 2, 4, 6, and 15 months during their well-baby examinations with inoculations. Salivary cortisol, behavioral distress, and maternal responsiveness measures obtained during these clinic visits were examined in relation to attachment classifications. In addition, parental report measures of the children's social fearfulness in the 2nd year of life were used to classify the children into high-fearful versus average- to low-fearful groups. In the 2nd year, the combination of high fearfulness and insecure versus secure attachment was associated with higher cortisol responses to both the clinic exam-inoculation situation and the Strange Situation. Thus, attachment security moderates the physiological consequences of fearful, inhibited temperament. Regarding the 2-, 4-, and 6-month data, later attachment security was related to greater maternal responsiveness and lower cortisol baselines. Neither cortisol nor behavioral reactivity to the inoculations predicted later attachment classifications. There was some suggestion, however, that at their 2-month checkup, infants who would later be classified as insecurely attached exhibited larger dissociations between the magnitude of their behavioral and hormonal response to the inoculations, Greater differences between internal (hormonal) and external (crying) responses were also negatively correlated with maternal responsiveness and positively correlated with pretest cortisol levels during these early months of life. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relations among infant temperament, attachment, and behavioral inhibition. 52 infants were seen at 2 days, 5, 14, and 24 months of age. Assessments were made of temperament at 2 days and 5 months of age, and attachment and behavioral inhibition were assessed at 14 and 24 months, respectively. EKG was recorded at each assessment, and measures of heart period and vagal tone were computed. Distress to pacifier withdrawal at 2 days of age was related to insecure attachment at 14 months. 2 types of distress reactivity at 5 months, reactivity to frustration and reactivity to novelty, were identified and related to high vagal tone. Attachment classification at 14 months was directly related to inhibited behavior at 24 months. Infants classified as insecure/resistant were more inhibited than those classified as insecure/avoidant. In addition, an interaction of infant reactivity to frustration and attachment classification was found to predict inhibition at 24 months. Infants classified as insecure/resistant and who had not cried to the arm restraint procedure at 5 months were the most inhibited at 24 months. These findings are discussed in terms of hypotheses regarding multiple modes of distress reactivity and regulation in early infancy and their different social and behavioral outcomes.
The begavioral reaction to unfamiliar events are basic pheomena in all vertebrates, Four month-old injants who show a low threshold to become distressed and motorically aroused to unfamiliar stimuli are likely than others to become fearful and subdued during early childhood, whereas infants who show a high arousal threshold are more likely to become bold and sociable. After presenting some developmental correlates and thrajectories of these 2 temperamental biases, I consider their implication for psychopathology and the relation between propositions containing psychological and biological concepts.
The role of the mother-toddler attachment relationship in moderating the relations between behavioral inhibition and changes in salivary cortisol levels in response to novel events was examined in 77 18-month-olds. Behavioral inhibition was determined by observing toddler inhibition of approach to several novel events. Attachment security to mother was assessed using the Ainsworth Strange Situation. Changes in salivary cortisol were used to index activity of the stress-sensitive hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) system. In addition, toddler coping behaviors and the behaviors used by mothers to help toddlers manage novel events were examined. Elevations in cortisol were found only for inhibited toddlers in insecure attachment relationships. Mothers in these relationships appeared to interfere with their toddlers' coping efforts. These results are discussed in the context of a coping model of the relations between temperament and stress reactivity.
Cross-cultural research using Ainsworth's Strange Situation tends to rely on incomplete information and to concentrate on individual rather than aggregated samples. In this study, a wider perspective is taken by examining almost 2,000 Strange Situation classifications obtained in 8 different countries. Differences and similarities between distributions in classifications of samples are investigated using correspondence analysis. Aggregation of samples per country and continent allowed for a firmer empirical basis for cross-cultural analysis. Substantial intracultural differences were established; in a number of instances, samples from 1 country resembled those in other countries more than they did each other. The data also suggest a pattern of cross-cultural differences, in which A classifications emerge as relatively more prevalent in Western European countries and C classifications as relatively more frequent in Israel and Japan. Intracultural variation was nearly 1.5 times the cross-cultural variation.
The purpose of this study was to examine the relations among infant temperament, attachment, and behavioral inhibition. 52 infants were seen at 2 days, 5, 14, and 24 months of age. Assessments were made of temperament at 2 days and 5 months of age, and attachment and behavioral inhibition were assessed at 14 and 24 months, respectively. EKG was recorded at each assessment, and measures of heart period and vagal tone were computed. Distress to pacifier withdrawal at 2 days of age was related to insecure attachment at 14 months. 2 types of distress reactivity at 5 months, reactivity to frustration and reactivity to novelty, were identified and related to high vagal tone. Attachment classification at 14 months was directly related to inhibited behavior at 24 months. Infants classified as insecure/resistant were more inhibited than those classified as insecure/avoidant. In addition, an interaction of infant reactivity to frustration and attachment classification was found to predict inhibition at 24 months. Infants classified as insecure/resistant and who had not cried to the arm restraint procedure at 5 months were the most inhibited at 24 months. These findings are discussed in terms of hypotheses regarding multiple modes of distress reactivity and regulation in early infancy and their different social and behavioral outcomes.
Cortisol 3-(o-carboxymethyl)oxime (C3-CMO) and a commercially available biotin-hydrazide derivative were used to synthesize a C3-CMO-biotin conjugate. C3-CMO was converted into a N-hydroxysuccinimide ester derivative which in a second reaction step was allowed to interact with the hydrazide derivative of biotin. This simple-to-perform synthesis yielded a conjugate suitable for use as a tracer in immunoassays for cortisol measurement. Employing biotin as the primary probe in a competitive solid phase immunoassay allows for variable end point determination by means of commercially available labeled avidin or streptavidin derivatives. Streptavidin-Europium was used in conjunction with the DELFIA-system for time-resolved fluorometric end point measurement (TR-FIA) throughout the study. In addition, colorimetric end point determination (ELISA) using streptavidin-alkaline phosphatase as a secondary probe was established and evaluated. Both forms of this non-isotopic assay showed excellent correlation with a commercially available radioimmunoassay adapted for salivary cortisol measurement. The lower detection limit was 0.43 nM for a 50 microliters salivary sample. The intra-assay coefficient of variation was 6.7, 4.7 and 4.0% at cortisol concentrations of 2.2, 5.5 and 13.2 nM, respectively (n = 37), and the corresponding inter-assay coefficients of variation were 9.0, 8.6 and 7.1% (n = 50). The competitive immunoassay requires 1.5 h incubation time and shows robust and reproducible performance. The C3-CMO-biotin conjugate allows for sensitive and flexible end point determination of salivary cortisol levels in immunoassays.
Scientific inquiry, for the most part, can be described as parochial. Not only are there clear demarcations between broad disciplinary categories (i.e., anatomy, physiology, psychology), but subspecialties are common within disciplines. Modern technology has made possible a trend toward greater and greater specialization. In fact, there are now areas of scientific investigation that did not exist a few years ago. This increasing specialization and its concomitant reductionism is not without its pitfalls and problems. There is a tendency to move away from the basic evolutionary concept of living organisms as organized systems functioning and adapting within an ecosystem. The laboratory scientist often ignores the inherent organization of living systems in favor of an intense pursuit of his or her particular chosen bit of the biological puzzle. However, there are still disciplines that not only subscribe to the notion of living organisms as organized systems but have made a valiant attempt to bring this concept under laboratory scrutiny. Often, in order to identify these endeavors, a technique is used to combine two or three words into one. Thus, we have several flourishing disciplines described as psychoneuroimmunology, psychoneuroendocrinology, neurochemistry, physiosociology, and so on. For the investigator who attempts a more integrated approach to the broad biological and psychological universe, the demands are heavy. He or she is faced with the need to maintain credibility in several disciplines, each of which is advancing at an accelerated pace. However, we feel that the value of an integrated approach that crosses traditional disciplinary lines will be illustrated in a small way by this article and, we hope, by the series of articles presented in this symposium section of Child Development.
Corticosteroid (C) release by adrenals of male Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) has been studied during continuous and discontinuous (flow stop) superfusion. Flow stops of superfusion for 1, 5, 10 or 20 min resulted in a significant accumulation of C within adrenal tissue and superfusion flask. Amounts of C in the first 2-min samples after re-start of superfusion were positively correlated with the amounts secreted during continuous superfusion (5 min: r = 0.97, 10 min: r = 0.97, 15 min: r = 0.74, 20 min: r = 0.84, all p less than 0.001) and with the length of flow stops (1-20 min: r = 0.92, p less than 0.001). However, C concentrations in superfusates were significantly lower than values calculated from secretion during continuous superfusion and the length of flow stops (0 min = 100%, 1 min: 92%, 5 min: 65%, 10 min: 49%, 15 min: 39%, 20 min: 35%). As is evident from the very similar C amounts secreted by adrenals incubated for 15 min without or with 95%O2/5%CO2 (234 vs 256% of basal secretion), flow stop-induced inhibition of corticosteroidogenesis was not due to a lack of oxygen during flow stops. The results demonstrate that superfusion of sliced adrenal tissue gives insights into regulatory mechanisms, including the rapid changes of corticosteroidogenesis during short-lasting flow stops, which cannot be studied in static incubation of either tissue slices or isolated cells. The possibility that the observed decline in steroidogenesis during flow stops may be due to a local feedback inhibition resulting from C accumulating in the microenvironment of adrenal cells is discussed.
In response to Frodi and Thompson's recent demonstration that infants classified A1-B2 in the Strange Situation differ significantly in emotional expression from infants classified B3-C2, several longitudinal data sets were examined to determine whether these group differences might be a function of infant temperament. Data from 3 separate samples revealed significant concordance between infant-mother and infant-father Strange Situation classifications when scored in terms of A1-B2 versus B3-C2, but not when scored in terms of the traditional A-B-C system. In addition, in 2 samples on which newborn behavioral data were available, A1-B2 infants displayed more autonomic stability than B3-C2 infants, and in one of the samples the former infants were more alert and positively responsive as newborns (with means in the same direction in Sample 2). Moreover, mothers of A1-B2 infants described their babies as less difficult to care for at 3 months of age. Considered together, these findings suggest that infant temperament affects the manner in which security or insecurity is expressed rather than whether or not the infant develops a secure or insecure attachment. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the study of the interactional antecedents and the developmental consequences of attachment security.
Mother-infant pairs were observed and videotaped in the Ainsworth-Wittig strange situation, a standard laboratory setting designed to assess the infant's quality of attachment. Concurrent with the video tape recording, heart rates of mother and infant were recorded throughout the session. Security of mother-infant attachment was reflected in the physiological responses of both mother and infant to the social events of interest in the strange situation. Securely attached infants exhibited a deceleratory response concurrent with attention to the stranger's entrance and her approach toward the infant. Similarly the mothers of these securely attached infants showed an “attentive” response to both these episodes. Insecurely attached infants and their mothers failed to show consistent physiologic response to either episode. Impending separation from the mother elicited an acceleratory response in both securely and insecurely attached infants even though their behavioral responses differed.
The initial development of the Toddler Temperament Scale (TTS) for determining temperamental characteristics in 1- to 3-year-old children is reported. The 97-item questionnaire was based on the conceptualization of Thomas, Chess, and associates in the New York Longitudinal Study and standardized on 309 children in two pediatric practices. Test-retest reliability (1 month) and alpha reliability are both satisfactory, with median correlations of .81 and .70, respectively, for the nine categories. Preliminary evidence of external validity is presented. The instrument should provide more objective and organized temperament data for research and clinical purposes. Language: en
Salivary cortisol levels were assessed in 19-month-old infants following the Ainsworth Strange Situation procedure. 38 infants participating in Project STEEP at the University of Minnesota served as subjects. Project STEEP is a longitudinal intervention program designed to promote healthy parent-child relationships and to prevent emotional problems among children born to mothers who are at high risk for parenting problems. Following the Strange Situation, saliva samples were collected and assayed for cortisol, a steroid hormone frequently examined in studies of stress. Behavior during the Strange Situation was coded by trained coders, and attachment classifications were determined for each infant. Cortisol concentrations did not differ between the 6 Avoidant/Resistant (A/C) and 17 Securely Attached (B) toddlers. Toddlers (n = 11) who were classified as having Disorganized/Disoriented (Type D) attachments exhibited higher cortisol concentrations than toddlers in the traditional (ABC) classifications. Results of this study were consistent with a model of stress reactivity that conceptualizes the organization of coping behaviors as a factor that mediates physiological stress responses.
Relatively little has been written about one group of infants identified with Ainsworth's "Strange Situation" assessment of infant-parent attachment, those classified insecure/ambivalent. Although virtually all samples contain some insecure/ambivalent infants, these infants are uncommon, comprising 7%-15% of most American samples. Recently developed assessments of attachment in children and adults have identified attachment groups of older individuals thought to parallel the insecure/ambivalent infant group. Empirical work in which insecure/ambivalent individuals are examined as a separate group is reviewed within the context of attachment theory, and a coherent picture emerges of the antecedents (relatively low or inconsistent maternal availability; biological vulnerability) and sequelae (limited exploratory competence) of this group. This picture is used as the basis for additional theoretical proposals, and suggestions for future research are presented.
The aim of this study was to assess relations between behavioral organization and adrenocortical and cardiac activity in newborns. Twice during the neonatal period, the behavioral organization of 42 newborns, in terms of orientation and irritability, was assessed by the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS), and the newborns' cortisol response to the NBAS procedure was determined. In addition, cardiac activity was assessed during 1 of the NBAS. Whereas there were only inconsistent correlations between newborn irritability and the adrenocortical response during NBAS, low orientation was associated with a higher increase in cortisol in both of the assessments. In addition, orientation was predicted by basal cortisol level. High heart rates were associated with high irritability and low regulation of state, and, in addition, negative relations were indicated between orientation and heart rate variability. The findings support a coping model of biobehavioral relations in newborns.
The behavioral reactions to unfamiliar events are basic phenomena in all vertebrates. Four-month-old infants who show a low threshold to become distressed and motorically aroused to unfamiliar stimuli are more likely than others to become fearful and subdued during early childhood, whereas infants who show a high arousal threshold are more likely to become bold and sociable. After presenting some developmental correlates and trajectories of these 2 temperamental biases, I consider their implications for psychopathology and the relation between propositions containing psychological and biological concepts.
Personlichkeit und Verhalten: Zur Standortbestimmun g von Differentieller Psychologie
- K Pawlik