Supporting Attachment

Supporting Attachment

Children Learn What They Live

“If a child lives with criticism, He learns to condemn.

If a child lives with hostility, He learns to fight.

If a child lives with ridicule, He learns to be shy.

If a child lives with shame, He learns to feel guilty.

If a child lives with tolerance, He learns to be patient.

If a child lives with encouragement, He learns confidence.

If a child lives with praise, He learns to appreciate.

If a child lives with fairness, He learns justice.

If a child lives with security, He learns to have faith.

If a child lives with approval, He learns to like himself.

If a child lives with acceptance and friendship,

He learns to find love in the world.”

- Dorothy Law Nolte

In the Same Way…

Research shows that child victims of neglect fail to develop secure psychological attachments as infants. This has serious implications for the child’s subsequent physical, cognitive, and emotional development.

If a child lives in a neglectful, non-nurturing environment and suffers at the hands of an abuser, he learns he is not safe, that his needs will not be met, and that violence is a way of life.

Introduction A history of responsive care and secure attachment form

the foundation for positive physical, cognitive, and psychological development of children.

Research shows that up to 80% of high-risk families create severe attachment disorders in their children.

As home visitors, you will be working with families who may not understand the importance of providing a nurturing, responsive environment for children.

You may also work with families who are having a difficult time establishing an attachment relationship with their baby.

Remember, Healthy Families wants to enhance parents' ability to create stable and nurturing home environments, to promote healthy childhood growth and development, and to help develop positive parent-child interaction.

IntroductionAs home visitors, you can achieve these goals is by...

Educating yourselves on the importance of attachment and the parent-child relationship, so that you can then share the information with families.

Taking steps to improve the quality of the parent-child relationship such as modeling techniques parents can use to support the attachment process.

Praising parents when they do engage in positive behaviors that support attachment. This will help increase the positive behavior.

Helping families develop FSP goalsto build the attachment relationship and to provide a nurturing environment for their children.

Introduction

This training will provide you with answers to these questions.

It is designed to help you understand what current research is saying about how children develop.

What do we really know about

how a young child develops?

What can parents do to best

support their child’s healthy

development and growing brain?

Training ObjectivesUpon completing this training, you will be able to…

Define Attachment.

Identify characteristics of securely and insecurely attached children.

Describe how lack of good nurturing impacts child development.

Understand the importance of positive, loving stimulation to brain development.

Identify signs of nurturing vs. non-nurturing environments.

Describe techniques that parents may use to provide a nurturing environment for their children.

Brain Development Research Babies are born with over

100 billion brain cells called neurons.

Brain cells connect with other brain cells to form critical pathways in the brain. These connections are called synapses.

Baby’s brains are not fully formed at birth.

The brain cells are present, but they are essentially waiting to be “connected” or “hooked up.” Neuron

Synapse

Brain Development Research

0

10

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50P

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E1st Yr 2nd

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~~ Life's

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Life Long Learning

A newborn’s brain is only about ¼ the size of an adult’s brain. By the age of 5 a child’s brain has grown to 90% of an adult-sized brain.

It is estimated that half of what we need to know for life (50%) is learned during the first year of life and another 25% is learned during the second year. From the age of three and on, the remaining 25% is learned.

The brain grows as more synapses and connections are formed.

Research on brain development shows that neural pathways that are used consistently are strengthened and that those that are rarely used may be pruned away. You basically use it or lose it.

Brain Development Research This suggests that the earliest

experiences in life, provide the foundation for shaping the brain and children’ s development.

Experiences actually change the structure of the brain.

In experiments with animals, nurturing and enriched environments led to an increased number of synaptic connections. It also led to an increase in the number of neurons and the volume of the hippocampus. The hippocampus is a region of the brain that is important for learning and memory.

Brain Development Research A report entitled From Neurons to Neighborhoods: the

Science of early Childhood Development, provided a few key findings about the nature of early child development.

Key findings from this report include:

A primary caregiver’s relationship with their child is the foundation of the child’s development.

A child’s development depends on both the traits he or she was born with and what he or she experiences. (Nature & Nurture)

All areas of development are linked. Each depends on and influences the other.

Experiences, including parental responses, shape a child’s development and how they adapt to the world.

Brain Development ResearchInformation about brain development tells us that…

Nurturing

environments

and attachment

relationships are

important to

healthy child

development!

Why Nurturing Environments are

Important Nurturing environments are important

because they provide the experiences,

responses, and relationships necessary for

healthy brain development.

Research tells us that baby brains grow and

critical brain pathways connect through

experience and positive, loving stimulation.

Nurturing environments provide stimulation,

and as a result, increase the number of

synaptic connections in the brain.

Therefore, healthy brain connections depend

on healthy human connections.

Why Nurturing Environments are

Important Infants and young children need

environments that are interesting to

explore, safe, and filled with caring

people who will respond to their

emotional, physical, and intellectual

needs.

Babies that get love, comfort, and

security will develop and learn better

than those who are ignored or neglected.

In fact, studies show that poor nurturing

and lack of responsive care impacts

child development in negative ways.

How Does Poor Nurturing Impact

Child Development?

Poor nurturing leads children to:

Lack trust

Lack confidence

Lack faith

Become more withdrawn

Feel a sense of worthlessness

Lack emotional connections

Have difficulty developing language and speech

Have poor brain activity

How Can Caregivers Promote

Healthy Development?

Caregivers can ensure healthy

child development by providing a

nurturing environment that helps

foster a secure attachment

relationship and help stimulate

brain activity.

Families and caregivers have always suspected they are

important to infants.

New brain research supports this idea by stressing and

confirming the importance of loving, nurturing and

consistent relationships with primary caregivers.

What is Attachment? Attachment is a strong affection that binds one person to

another.

It is the emotional connection that infants and children

develop toward their parents and others who care for them.

An infant’s first attachment is formed with the primary

caregiver that provides physical and emotional care.

An attachment is formed between a

primary caregiver and child during the first

few years of life.

This attachment relationship forms during

the critical times of early brain

development, and is therefore, a significant

influence on future development.

Why is Attachment Important? Attachment is essential for the foundation of a healthy

personality. It helps children to:

Attain their full intellectual potential

Sort out what they perceive

Think logically

Develop a conscience

Become self-reliant

Handle fear and worry

Develop future relationships (Fahlberg, 1979).

The attachment relationship actually becomes the base from which all other relationships are formed.

A solid and healthy attachment relationship with a primary caregiver means that a child will most likely establish healthy relationships with others as he or she grows.

Why is Attachment Important? Secure attachment provides infants with feelings of safety

and security.

It allows the infant and child to explore his or her world and

to know that if frightened or distressed, he or she will be

safe, soothed or comforted by their caregiver.

It allows them to trust others and their world, which allows

them the freedom and security to explore their

surroundings. This provides the necessary stimulation for

healthy brain development.

These early attachment relationships, therefore, influence

brain development and help to shape emotions, thinking,

learning, and behavior throughout life.

Bonding is the process of forming an attachment.

Bonding involves a set of behaviors on the part of the

infant and primary caregiver that will lead to an emotional

connection.

Infants are born defenseless and must depend on a

caregiver to survive.

During the first years of life, infants will signal needs

though the use of cues. For example, infants may babble,

coo, cry, smile, and cling.

An emotionally and physically healthy caregiver will

respond by cuddling, rocking, gazing at, or touching the

infant to soothe or comfort him and meets his needs.

How is Attachment Formed?

In most cases, the caregiver’s

responses calm, soothe, and gratify

the infant.

At the same time, the infant’s

behaviors and responses gratify and

please the caregiver.

It is through this reciprocal process

of positive responses that

attachment is formed.

The infant must receive these

responses consistently and

repeatedly for normal attachment

and bonding to occur.

The Healthy Attachment Cycle

Baby has a

need

Baby

Cries

Need

is

met

Trust

Develops

In the healthy attachment

cycle, the infant’s needs

are met repeatedly and

consistently over and over

again. Satisfaction is felt

by both the infant and

caregiver.

Disturbed Attachment Cycle In other instances, a caregiver

may not respond to an infant’s

signals or may respond to the

infant’s needs in negative

ways.

For example, the caregiver

may hit, scream, or simply

ignore the infant.

At the height of this emotional

state, this infant may learn that

his needs will not be met, or

that abuse is the only means

of gratification.

Baby has

a need

Baby

Cries

Need

is not

met

Trust does not

Develop

In the disturbed

attachment cycle, the

infant’s needs are not met

repeatedly and consistently

over and over again. This

infant learns that the world

is an unsafe place and that

his needs will not be met.

How Trust Develops It is through these patterns of interaction that trust and

attachment relationships develop between infant and caregiver.

Consistent and repeated positive responses on the part of the caregiver will teach children that they can trust that their needs will be met. Children begin to anticipate the response of the caregiver.

On the other hand, if a caregiver consistently and repeatedly fails to meet a child’s needs or responds in negative and inconsistent ways, the child will learn not to trust.

The quality of the attachment relationship will have an impact on a child’s physical, social, and emotional development.

Assessing the Quality of Attachment

Attachment is not assessed in terms of quantity, but

instead in terms of quality.

For example, those infants who experience healthy

attachment cycles are labeled secure.

Infants who experience disturbed attachment cycles are

labeled insecure.

In order to assess the effects that differing attachment

relationships have on a child’s development, researchers

use a procedure called the Strange Situation.

The Strange Situation procedure was first used by Mary

Ainsworth.

What is the Strange Situation? In the Strange Situation procedure, infants

that are about 1 year of age are separated

and reunited with their primary caregiver .

The Strange Situation is intended to be a

somewhat stressful experience for an

infant.

The procedure introduces several stressful

experiences to the infant such as a new

room, a stranger, and two separations

from his or her primary caregiver.

The goal is to examine and observe how

the infant uses the caregiver to help him or

her cope with stress.

The Strange Situation The manner in which infants react to this situation reveals

the different expectations infants have about the availability of caregivers in times of need. (The infants’ responses will vary depending on whether or not they have undergone healthy attachment cycles or disturbed attachment cycles)

It is assumed that securely attached infants will seek

comfort and reassurance from the caregiver during times

of distress and use the caregiver as a secure base from

which to explore.

The Strange Situation procedure consists of a series of 8

episodes during which infant and caregiver are separated

and reunited.

Strange Situation Episodes

The following 8 episodes occur during the procedure:

1. Caregiver and infant are introduced to the

experimental room.

2. Caregiver and infant are alone in the room.

3. A stranger enters the room, talks to the caregiver,

and then approaches the infant and attempts to play

with the infant.

4. The caregiver leaves the room inconspicuously and

the first separation occurs. The infant is left with the

stranger.

Strange Situation Episodes

5. The first reunion episode occurs. The caregiver

enters the room, greets and comforts the infant if

necessary and tries to withdraw.

6. The second separation occurs. This time the

caregiver leaves the room and the infant is left alone.

7. The stranger reenters the room and tries to settle the

infant if necessary.

8. A second reunion occurs. The caregiver enters the

room, greets the infant, picks up the infant, and the

stranger leaves the room inconspicuously.

Attachment Categories As a result of studies in this area, researchers have

identified four patterns of infant attachment behaviors.

These are:

Secure attachment

Avoidant attachment

Resistant attachment

Disorganized/disoriented attachment

Avoidant, resistant, and disorganized/disoriented patterns

of attachment are considered insecure forms of

attachment.

Infants exhibit differing behaviors depending on the

attachments they have formed with their caregiver.

Insecure

patterns of

attachment

Secure Attachment In secure attachment, infants

learn that their caregiver is consistently available to them in times of distress.

Securely attached infants will seek comfort from their caregiver in times of distress and will also use them as a secure base from which to explore.

For example, they may wander off to explore, but check in periodically with their caregiver.

Avoidant Attachment In avoidant attachment, infants learn that their caregiver

is not available or a consistent protector from stress.

When the primary caregiver of a child who has avoidant

attachment briefly leaves the child, the child is not very

distressed and actively turns away from the caregiver

upon reunion.

It is estimated that 20% of American infants

show this pattern of attachment.

Resistant Attachment In resistant attachment, an infant learns

that the parent is emotionally available,

but is unpredictable.

When the primary caregiver of a child

who has resistant attachment briefly

leaves the child, the child is very

distressed upon the separation.

The child is also ambivalent or angry and

resists physical contact upon reunion

with the caregiver.

It is estimated that 10-15% of infants

exhibit this pattern.

Disorganized/Disoriented Attachment

When the primary caregiver of a child who has disorganized/ disoriented attachment briefly leaves the child, the child is extremely distressed.

This infant experiences the most distress by separation and upon reunion acts confused and dazed.

It is estimated that 5-10% of American infants exhibit this pattern of attachment.

Characteristics of Securely Attached

Children

Securely attached and insecurely attached children

have been found to differ in many ways.

Securely attached children will venture away from their

caregiver and explore their environment (using the

caregiver as a secure base) and will return to the

caregiver if there is any anxiety.

Studies also show that securely

attached children engage in more

elaborate make-believe play.

Securely attached children have also

been found to be more cooperative.


Children In preschool, securely attached children display

greater enthusiasm, flexibility and persistence

in problem-solving.

They are more self-confident and have a

positive self-concept.

Securely attached children

are also more empathetic and

they demonstrate an

expectation to receive

empathetic responses from

their caregiver.


Children

As infants, securely attached children may

cry when their caregiver leaves, but they

seek contact when their caregiver returns.

They also smile more readily at the caregiver.

Finally, studies show that

securely attached children are

better at regulating their

emotions, are more emotionally

open to others, and have less

school adjustment problems.

Characteristics of Insecurely

Attached Children

Studies also show that insecurely attached infants cry

significantly more than attached infants.

Children who have few positive relationships in early

childhood or who are insecurely attached are at risk for a

number of problems.

Insecurely attached infants will not explore their surroundings

because they cannot trust that their caregiver will be

available to them when they need them. This can lead to

lower cognitive skills because exploration experiences are

necessary for brain development.

In addition, infants may not develop feelings of competence.


Attached Children

From preschool through adolescence,

children with avoidant attachment were

more likely to have behavioral and

emotional problems.

In one study, two-year olds demonstrated

significant deficits in coping skills, more

frustration, anger, and noncompliance when

compared to securely attached children.

Insecurely attached children also show evidence of

lower self-esteem, poorer control over impulses, and

express less positive and more negative affect.


Attached Children

In addition, insecurely attached children have higher

levels of cortisol in their saliva.

Cortisol is a hormone that is secreted during times of

stress. Researchers believe that high levels of cortisol

may impede neural connections and the ability of the

brain to regulate emotions.

This may explain why insecurely attached children are

less well-prepared for learning.

Finally, in extreme cases, insecurely attached children

show no remorse when harming others and are at risk for

developing ant-social, aggressive, and violent behaviors.

What Causes Attachment Problems? Despite popular belief,

attachment problems are not always the result of abuse.

In fact, a majority of attachment problems are due to parental ignorance about child development and bonding rather than abuse.

Many parents simply do not know or understand that the first three years of life are the most critical for brain development and that their relationship with the child affects development.

Factors that Impede Attachment In addition to parental ignorance about child development,

there are other factors that can affect the formation of an

attachment.

Premature babies are usually more

difficult to parent than a baby born at

full term. This may lead parents to

have negative feelings towards the

infant, which can lead to attachment

problems.

Difficult or unwanted pregnancies can also lead to

attachment problems. Mothers may not experience

any positive feelings towards their baby. They may

engage in little interaction with their baby.

Factors that Impede Attachment Child temperaments can hinder attachment relationships.

Some children may be difficult to comfort,

aggressive/hyperactive, or depressed. This may cause

much frustration to the caregiver, causing them to ignore

or respond inappropriately to an infant.

In other instances, the temperament of the caregiver

doesn’t match the child’s, thus leading to

misunderstanding or over stimulation of the infant.

Finally, a caregiver who is

depressed or chemically dependent

is emotionally unavailable to their

infant because their own needs

have not been met.

Factors that Impede Attachment In addition to the factors already mentioned, there are a

variety of other factors that can cause disruptions or

interruptions in attachment. These include:

Divorce

Death

Inadequate daycare

Child with a chronic illness

Child with a disability

Caregiver with chronic illness

What Can Home Visitors Do?

As home visitors, there are several things that you can do to help promote healthy child growth and development.

We have learned that two of the most important factors influencing development are nurturing environments and attachment relationships.

Therefore, as home visitors you must encourage parents to provide nurturing environments for their infant/child and to respond in appropriate ways to their infant’s/child’s needs.

What Home Visitors Can Do In order to help caregivers respond

appropriately to their children, home visitors must first be able to assess the quality of attachment relationships.

This requires that home visitors be able to identify signs of both positive and problematic parent and infant relationships.

If a home visitor finds that there is evidence of a problematic relationship, they can then identify the best strategy to help foster a more positive relationship.

On the other hand, if parents seem to be responding in appropriate ways to their children, then efforts may be aimed at other issues.

Signs of Positive Attachment Some positive signs that demonstrate a parent’s

attachment with their baby include:

Parent feels pleasure in the infant and in the task of caring for him/her.

Parents are able to understand the infant’s mood and comfort the infant when he/she is upset.

Parents are able to read the infant’s cues and are sensitive to the infant’s emotional and physical needs.

Parent’s can distinguish between infant’s cries. For example, they can tell if it is a cry of distress or a cry of hunger.

Finally, parent’s nurture the infant while feeding him/her.

Signs of Problematic Attachment Some negative signs that demonstrate a parent is having

a difficult time attaching to their infant include:

Parent does not touch, look at, or make eye contact with the infant/child.

Parent does not talk about the baby. If the parent does talk about the infant, he or she may do so in a negative way. For example, may refer to the baby as “it.”

Parent does not nurture the infant while feeding, and may prop bottle during feedings.

Parent ignores the infant and fails to respond to his or her needs.

Parent does not respond to infant cues in appropriate ways.

Parent expresses negative feelings about caring for the infant.

What Home Visitors Can Do If home visitors notice that parents are having difficulty

engaging in positive interactions with their infant, they can

do a number of things:

Attempt to educate parents about the importance of

engaging in positive interactions with their infant.

Explain how children learn to trust and how early

relationships impact brain development.

Help parents become more sensitive to an infant’s

cues and needs.

Provide parents with information or handouts that

explain what various cues may mean.

What Home Visitors Can Do Home visitors can also discuss the ways in which

caregiver’s themselves were parented.

Discussions of this nature may help parents change their

ideas and mental representations of what it means to

parent.

Home visitors can supply parents with toys and attempt to

engage them in parent-child activities.

They can model or demonstrate ideas that are ideal for

bonding and building the relationship.

Finally, they can provide parents with ideas about how

they can create a nurturing environment for their

infant/child.

How to Create a Nurturing Environment Since children learn to trust through repeated and

consistent responses on the part of their caregiver, one

way parents can provide a nurturing environment is by

creating a predictable world with routine. This will help

children anticipate their parent’s response, thus letting

them know they will be safe and protected.

Scientists believe the most important factor in creating

attachment is positive physical contact such as hugging,

holding, and rocking.

Therefore, a second way parents can

provide a nurturing environment for their

children is by talking, singing, and

reading to their baby/child.

How to Create a Nurturing Environment Parents can also nurture their

infant/child by holding them close.

They can praise the infant/child for his/her accomplishments. This will help build their self-esteem and confidence.

Parents can also provide infants/children with age appropriate toys. Play is an important and integral part of child development because it allows children to explore and it stimulates brain activity.

Finally, parents can child proof their homes to ensure their child’s safety.

Tips for Modeling

Always remember that modeling is one of the easiest ways

for home visitors to demonstrate behaviors that are ideal

for bonding. When modeling for parents:

Avoid being the expert by including parents in parent-

child activities

Build on a parent’s strengths

Recognize all positive steps and accomplishments

Maintain dialogue with parents about the developmental

meaning of the infant’s/child’s actions

Involve the parent so that he/she may become more

than a passive observer.

Documents

Supporting Attachment