Conference Agenda

Introduction. Family functioning is a system-level construct reflecting a family’s organization, coordination, and adaptive processes. It is often assumed that family functioning is a central organizing hub reflecting other family subsystems. This assumption may obscure the interinfluences among family processes, in which multiple subsystems shape family dynamics.

Objectives. This study examined the assumption that family functioning serves as a central hub , when considered alongside other family subsystems (couple, coparental, mother-child, father-child, and sibling relationships), and individual characteristics (mental health and behavioral problems).

Methods. A sample of 76 families with school-aged children (M_age = 8.45 years, 51.3% girls) completed observational, self-report, and parent-report measures assessing family subsystems and individual characteristics. During a home visit, the whole family participated in a board game task, which was coded for family functioning with an adapted version of the Moss Parent-Child Interaction Scale. Siblings completed a separate board game task, which was coded for relationship quality using the Sibling Interactions Behavioral Coding. During lab visits, each parent-child dyad engaged in a no-toy play interaction, which was coded for parent-child synchrony using the Moss scales. Children reported on their behavioral problems using the Dominic-Interactif. Network analyses simultaneously modelled family subsystems and individual characteristics, comparing regularized partial-correlation networks with weighted correlation networks.

Results. Regularized partial-correlation networks yielded no robust conditional associations, indicating that no family subsystem operated as a uniquely central driver of the family system. Correlation networks, however, revealed widespread associations among subsystems. Mother-child dyadic coordination emerged as the highest connected node, whereas family functioning showed moderate but non-central connectivity.

Conclusions.

These exploratory findings suggest a non-hierarchical conceptualization of family systems, unlike the hierarchical models that assume family functioning as a system-level hub. This multidimensional, non-hierarchical approach can help clarify relational processes that support or undermine the family systems.

Research on parents’ mentalization – the ability to view their children as psychological agents with their own thoughts and feelings – has recently surged (Nieto-Retuerto et al., 2025). Parents’ attachment security, formed largely during their own early experiences, has been associated with more positive mentalization. Furthermore, parents’ better mentalization skills have been linked to more adaptive child outcomes. Although interest in fathering has rapidly grown, with fathers seen as taking on different socialization roles than mothers (Volling & Cabrera, 2025), research on fathers’ mentalization still lags behind that of mothers.

We examined developmental cascades from fathers’ attachment security, to their mentalization, to their responsiveness to the child, to children’s responsiveness. The latter is an important developmental outcome, seen as a marker of children’s overall willingness to be socialized (Forman et al., 2004; Kochanska et al., 2015).

In a longitudinal study of 200 father-child dyads from U.S. Midwest, at 8 months, fathers’ attachment security was assessed with an increasingly adopted approach: Coding narratives elicited by word-prompt for secure base script knowledge (Attachment Script Assessment; Waters & Roisman, 2019). Their mentalization skills encompassed mind-mindedness, observed at 8 months, and pre-mentalizing modes (difficulty interpreting children’s mental states) and interest/curiosity in children’s mental states, reported at 16 months in the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (Luyten et al., 2017). Fathers’ and children’s responsiveness were behaviorally observed at 38 months and 52 months, respectively.

Indirect effects from fathers’ security to children’s responsiveness via all three mentalization measures – mind-mindedness, pre-mentalizing modes, and interest and curiosity in mental states – were present. Fathers’ attachment security predicted greater mind-mindedness and interest/curiosity in mental states and lower pre-mentalizing modes, which further predicted fathers’ greater responsiveness, and in turn, greater child responsiveness.

Our findings contribute to research on fathers’ mentalization. We highlight the long-term importance of fathers’ mentalization in the development of children’s responsiveness.

Early caregiving quality is associated with ADHD symptoms and problem behavior in later childhood (Bureaux & Harvey, 2018; Slade & Wissow, 2004). However, few studies have assessed how fathers’ views of themselves as parents relate to their caregiving and to their children’s outcomes. This study is among the first to examine how fathers’ views of themselves regarding their traditional fathering roles (disciplinarian, teacher/mentor) and their parenting values affect their caregiving sensitivity and their children’s later mental health. Couples, primarily white and middle/low SES, were followed longitudinally. When children were 24-months old, 92 fathers completed a caregiving interview that was coded using a new system capturing fathers’ caregiving values (i.e., having a strong emotional connection with the child, preparing their child for the future, setting limits constructively, and investment in being a parent), and endorsement of traditional fathering roles of Disciplinarian and Teacher/Mentor. Father-child interactions during problem-solving tasks were observed and coded for sensitive caregiving. At age 7, teachers reported children’s ADHD symptoms and conduct problems. Structural equation modeling uncovered indirect pathways from fathers’ caregiving attitudes at 24 months to ADHD symptoms and to conduct problems via caregiving sensitivity, controlling for gender, temperament, and fathers' education. Stronger caregiving values predicted fewer ADHD symptoms at age 7 (β=.309, p=.002) through greater sensitivity. Valuing the Disciplinarian role related to lower sensitivity (β=-.226, p=.010) but did not predict ADHD symptoms. Valuing the Teacher/Mentor role related to fewer ADHD symptoms only (β=-.239, p=.040). Stronger caregiving values predicted fewer conduct problems at age 7 (β=.310, p=.009) through greater sensitivity. Valuing the Disciplinarian role was related to lower sensitivity but did not predict conduct problems (β=-.228, p=.009). Valuing the Teacher/Mentor role was unrelated to sensitivity or conduct problems. Findings suggest the importance of fathers’ parenting values on their caregiving sensitivity and their children’s behavioral outcomes.

Attachment theory posits developmental continuity of attachment-related processes, from internal working models formed in adolescence to relational functioning in adulthood.

This poster integrates findings from two developmental stages. Study 1 examined adolescents aged 12–15 years (N = 84), assessing attachment representations with the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) and depressive symptoms using the Child Depression Inventory. Study 2 was a two-wave longitudinal study of emerging adults (N = 1076) investigating attachment-proximal indicators of relational closeness to parents and to partners/close others as predictors of mental health (Mental Health Continuum–Short Form), quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF), and psychological resilience (KOP-26).

In Study 1, insecure attachment was significantly associated with the presence of depressive symptoms (χ² = 8.39, p = .039). Among adolescents without depressive symptoms, 75% were securely attached. Continuous secure attachment functioned as a particularly strong protective factor: 71.4% of continuously secure adolescents reported no depressive symptoms, and no cases of severe depression were observed among either continuously secure or earned-secure individuals.

In Study 2, greater perceived closeness to parents and to partners/close others at Wave 1 was moderately associated with better mental health and higher quality of life. Partner/close-other closeness showed slightly stronger associations with mental health, consistent with the developmental transfer of attachment functions. Relational closeness was also strongly associated with psychological resilience, with comparable effect sizes observed across both waves. Relational closeness, mental health, and quality of life demonstrated moderate to high stability over time, and longitudinal analyses indicated that attachment-related relational closeness at Wave 1 predicted mental health and quality of life at Wave 2.

Across adolescence and emerging adulthood, attachment-related processes show meaningful developmental continuity. Attachment representations in adolescence and attachment-proximal relational closeness in emerging adulthood are consistently linked to vulnerability, well-being, and resilience, supporting the enduring role of attachment organization across development.

Childhood trauma is a well-established risk factor for further domestic violence in adulthood,

increasing vulnerability both to revictimization through intimate partner violence (IPV) and to

violence against one’s own children (VAC). Yet the psychological mechanisms sustaining

these harmful intergenerational patterns remain poorly understood. From an attachment

perspective, early maltreatment may disrupt the development of epistemic trust – the

capacity to regard others as reliable sources of social knowledge – thereby shaping later

relational expectations and vulnerability. This study investigated disruptions in epistemic

trust, specifically heightened epistemic credulity and epistemic mistrust, as potential

mediators linking childhood maltreatment to experiences of IPV and to the perpetration of

VAC.

Using cross-sectional self-report data from a representative sample of the German

population (N = 2,515), we found that childhood maltreatment was associated with lower

epistemic trust, elevated levels of both credulity and mistrust, as well as higher rates of IPV

and VAC. In line with our preregistered hypotheses, epistemic credulity significantly mediated

the association between childhood maltreatment and both current and lifetime IPV exposure.

In a subsample of 429 parents, epistemic mistrust mediated the link between childhood

adversity and perpetration of VAC. Additionally, current, but not lifetime, IPV was associated

with VAC.

These findings highlight distinct facets of epistemic disruption as attachment-related

vulnerability factors contributing to both revictimization and perpetration of intrafamilial

violence in adulthood. A deeper understanding of these intergenerational mechanisms may

inform targeted prevention and intervention efforts for families at risk.

Early caregiving relationships are important for children’s socioemotional development and behavioral adjustment during the preschool years (Cooke et al., 2022). Parents’ broader relational contexts, particularly social support, are linked to parenting and child behavior outcomes (Armstrong et al., 2005), yet underlying processes remain unclear. Two key parenting processes are parental self-efficacy (Bandura, 1997) and parental reflective functioning (Luyten et al., 2017). Little is known about how these processes jointly connect social support to child behavior. The present study therefore tests a serial mediation model in which higher perceived social support is expected to predict greater self-efficacy, higher reflective functioning, and fewer child behavior problems in preschoolers.

Data are from a study examining early life stress and self-regulation in preschool-aged children in Ypsilanti, MI. Caregivers (n = 77) completed measures of perceived social support (MSPSS; Zimet et al., 1988), parental self-efficacy (PSOC; Gibaud-Wallston & Wandersman, 1978), parental reflective functioning (PRFQ; Luyten et al., 2017), and child behavior problems (ECBI, intensity subscale; Boggs et al., 1990). Data were analyzed using PROCESS in R (Hayes, 2012), with bootstrapped 95% confidence intervals (10,000 iterations).

Results showed that higher perceived social support predicted higher parental self-efficacy (b = 0.20, p = .004), and higher self-efficacy predicted higher parental reflective functioning (b = 0.43, p < .001). Higher parental reflective functioning was associated with fewer child behavior problems (b = −21.01, p = .002). The serial indirect effect from social support to child behavior through self-efficacy and parental reflective functioning was significant (bindirect = −1.82, 95% CI [−5.01, −0.40]), while the direct effect of social support on child behavior was not significant.

These findings underscore the importance of parents’ relational and psychological resources. Social support may bolster parents’ confidence and reflective capacities, which are critical for sensitive, attuned caregiving and, ultimately, for preschoolers’ behavioral adjustment.

In Japan, over 70% of children living under social care resident in institutions. The caregivers there are trying to form secure attachment relationship with children. However, it is questionable how they understand attachment concept.

This study explored to clarify the attachment concept Japanese caregivers of infants’ and children’s home understand through asking their values in their interaction with children. The subjects are nine caregivers (5 children’s home, 3 infants’ home and I agency of foster parents). We conducted interviews about important aspects of their interaction with children and analyzed them by the word-mining method (KH Coder: Higuchi, 2001). Then we asked to sort the most ideal children by using Attachment Q-sort and calculated attachment, dependency and Amae scores.

The results indicated that while caregivers took attachment as important in interaction with children, their focus remained within a good relationship. It was suggested that the concept of the secure base has not yet sufficiently permeated Japanese institutional practice. Furthermore, we divided AQS attachment, dependency and Amae scores into high and low groups (attachment stability <.6, dependency <.19, Amae <.1). Caregivers with high attachment security scores frequently used attachment-related words when discussing their caregiving, while those with lower scores tended to discuss daily life events. The selected words of subjects with high dependency scores were similar those with high Amae scores. On the other hand, those with high Attachment scores focused on different topics. As the research in Japan (Vereijken, 1995) indicated the concept of Amae and dependency is very similar with each other and the concept of attachment is very different from dependency, subjects valued Amae and dependency as an ideal child are similar with each other and very different from those valued Attachment. Further research will be needed to examine the meaning of attachment concept with Japanese cultural context.

Background. Do early relational patterns shape whether life feels meaningful? Attachment relationships provide a foundational context in which individuals learn whether the world is safe, the self is worthy, and others are reliable. These core assumptions closely align with central components of meaning in life (MIL), commonly defined in terms of coherence, purpose, and significance. From an attachment perspective, secure attachment is expected to foster meaning by supporting emotion regulation, trust, and goal-directed engagement with life, whereas insecure attachment may undermine existential functioning. Despite strong theoretical consensus, empirical findings linking adult attachment to MIL remain fragmented and have not yet been systematically synthesized.

Aim. This preregistered meta-analysis examines if adult attachment dimensions (attachment anxiety and attachment avoidance) are associated with overall meaning in life. In addition, it investigates whether attachment anxiety, characterized by hyperactivation and negative self-models, shows a stronger negative association with MIL than attachment avoidance, which reflects emotional distancing and self-reliance.

Methods. Following PRISMA guidelines for meta-analyses, a systematic search was conducted in several online databases (MEDLINE, Web of Science, ProQuest Psychology, CINAHL, and PubPsych) for peer-reviewed studies assessing dimensional adult attachment and overall MIL. Study identification, screening, eligibility assessment, and data extraction are conducted in accordance with a preregistered protocol (OSF). At the time of abstract submission, title and abstract screening is ongoing. Eligible studies will be analysed using multilevel random-effects models, allowing for dependent effect sizes. Separate models will be estimated for attachment anxiety and avoidance, followed by meta-regression directly comparing their associations.

Expected contribution. By integrating evidence across diverse samples and measures, this study aims to clarify how attachment-related anxiety and avoidance shape the experience of meaning in life. Preliminary results are expected to be available by the time of the conference.

The relationship between infants and their fathers has been rarely studied in the field of attachment theory (Madigan et al., 2023). Empirical evidence indicates that factors such as father’s involvement, mental health, and sociodemographic factors, can influence children's development (Cabrera et al., 2018). The goal of this study was to describe the infant-fathers’ attachment and explore its relationship with fathers’ involvement, mental health, and demographics. A sample of 84 infant-father dyads was measured (Mage = 17.7 months, SD = 2.31; range = 13-25) and 34.8 years for fathers (SD = 7.27; range = 21-61). Results showed that 48.8% of dyads were classified as secure, 21.4% as avoidant and 29.8% as resistant. In regard to fathers’ involvement, only 20.9% report that they care for their young child for more than 5 hours a day, and only 39.1% are satisfied with the amount of time they spend with their child. Most fathers agree that raising children should be a shared task (97.7%) even though a lower percentage of fathers (58.6%) indicate that both parents get up at night to comfort their infant if needed, while 35.6% report that only the mother performs this task. High levels of anxiety and depressive symptomatology were found in 18.8% and 21.3% of fathers, respectively. No significant differences were found between the attachment classification groups and father’s involvement, mental health or demographics, except for the age, with fathers in the secure group being older than in the insecure group. Bivariate analysis showed negative significant associations between father’s daily caregiving hours and anxiety symptoms (r = -.29, p = .01) and educational level and anxiety symptoms (r =-.26, p = .03). In conclusion, in the Chilean context, children develop secure attachment relationships with their fathers, although at a slightly lower rate than other groups.

Attachment theory has increasingly emphasized fathers as attachment figures; however, researchers have conducted relatively few studies applying the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to father–infant dyads. In the present study, we assessed attachment types using the SSP and examined infants’ physiological responses during the procedure with fathers, focusing on heart rate variability (HRV) as an index of autonomic regulation and emotional arousal.

We analyzed data from 53 Japanese father–infant dyads and examined infants’ HRV across SSP episodes. We classified attachment types as avoidant (n = 7), secure (n = 22), ambivalent (n = 16), and disorganized (n = 9). Within the sample, we identified two distinct behavioral patterns. In one pattern, infants called for their mothers during the SSP (n = 6). In the other, infants displayed distress during separation without subsequently showing proximity-seeking behavior toward fathers during the reunion episode (n = 3).

Examining HRV during the SSP may help clarify whether fathers can provide infants with physiological security in ways similar to mothers. Moreover, integrating HRV with these distinctive behavioral patterns may deepen our understanding of the meaning underlying such behaviors.

This study draws on data from Japanese father–infant dyads, a population that remains underrepresented in attachment research. HRV may also offer insights into cultural characteristics, such as the relatively high prevalence of ambivalent attachment classifications. Given the limited availability of attachment data from East Asia, including Japan, this study provides important implications for understanding cultural variation in early attachment relationships.

TOPIC

The intergenerational transmission of attachment has been widely explored in infants and toddlers, yet comparatively less is known about adolescents. Emotion regulation strategies and reflective functioning in parents may be central to understanding attachment security in adolescence. Clarifying the patterns of connection between parents and adolescents is useful for attachment-based interventions that enhance security, particularly in high-risk clinical samples wherein mental health, social relatedness and psychosocial adjustment maybe compromised.

AIMS

We present preliminary findings on patterns of attachment security in 80 parent-adolescent triads, assessed during the adolescent’s inpatient treatment within the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, in Greece. Adolescents typically present with mental health difficulties, including suicidality, eating disorders, emotional and thought disorders assessed using ICD-10 clinical diagnoses, alongside the Youth Self Report.

METHOD

We are conducting correlational analyses examining (a) associations between attachment security in adolescents and security/insecurity/unresolved trauma or loss in their parents, and (b) associations between attachment security, mentalization and emotion regulation in adolescents and parental emotion regulation and reflective functioning. We will also fit multiple regression models to examine the contribution of parental attachment status to adolescent attachment security while accounting for relevant covariates (i.e parental childhood trauma, socio-economic status, and mental health).

Data derive from attachment interviews (Adult Attachment Interview for mothers and fathers; Friends and Family Interview for adolescents) and questionnaires (e.g., Difficulties for Emotion Regulation Scale, Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire for adolescents, Reflective Functioning-Scale on AAI).

FOCUS

This cross-sectional study explores attachment-related patterns and attachment-related domains of interaction between at-risk adolescents and their parents in a clinical context.

Context: In France, 18% of children aged 2 to 7 years and 6% of those aged 8 to 17 are classified as obese (Fontbonne et al., 2023). Current research aims to understand the etiology and maintenance of this condition from early childhood to inform prevention and early intervention. The Obesity’s Child project examines the role of psychological and environmental factors in polygenic childhood obesity, a major public health concern according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Aims: This study, part of the Child’s Obesity project, investigates the influence of maternal attachment quality on children’s self-regulation abilities through the coping strategies employed in response to their children’s negative emotions. Methods: A total of 64 French mothers and 68 children aged 3 to 6 years were assessed during home visits. We present data on maternal attachment dimensions, assessed using the Relationship Style Questionnaire (RSQ; Griffin & Bartholomew, 1994); examine their influence on parental coping strategies in response to child distress, measured by the Coping with Children’s Negative Emotions Scale (Fabes et al., 1990); and children’s emotional self-regulation abilities, assessed by the Emotion Regulation Checklist (Shields & Cicchetti, 1997). Results: Mothers with higher attachment security tended to use more punitive responses while reducing the frequency of emotion-encouraging responses. Nevertheless, maternal attachment security and punitive responses were both associated with decreased emotional dysregulation in children. Discussion: Cross-cultural findings suggest that French parents, compared to American ones, rely more on punitive and less on expression-promoting strategies, reflecting cultural norms emphasizing emotional control (Li et al., 2024). However, punitive strategies used by securely attached mothers may reflect adaptive responses within socio-cultural expectations, supporting children’s internalization of social norms and socio-emotional development (Rodrigues et al., 2024). Overall, this study underscores the importance of cultural context in shaping how parental attachment and parenting practices influence child development.

Attachment theory assumes that attachment behavior and attachment representations influence each other across development. However, theoretical perspectives within attachment research differ in how attachment behavior and representations are organized and how their relation changes across development, ranging from increasing integration to persistent or increasing divergence. Theoretical considerations point to four open questions during the preschool years: (1) how attachment behavior and representations are concurrently related, (2) whether this association changes over time, (3) if they are longitudinally stable, and (4) whether they predict each other over time.

This longitudinal study assessed attachment behavior and representations in 4- to 5-year-old children twice over the course of one year (N = 142). Concurrent correlations revealed an association between security of attachment behavior and representations at the second (r = .21, p = .025), but not first time point (r = −.06, p = .522).

Cross-lagged panel models controlling for age showed substantial longitudinal stability of attachment behavior (β = .48, p < .001), whereas attachment representations showed weaker stability (β = .18, p = .070). Attachment behavior did not predict later attachment representations (β = .05, p = .538), whereas attachment representations showed a small prospective association with later attachment behavior (β = .19, p = .008; χ²[1] = 6.08, p = .014).

Together, these findings indicate increasing coherence between attachment behavior and representations across the preschool years, alongside asymmetric longitudinal relations. Attachment behavior proves to be more developmentally stable than attachment representations across time. Attachment representations, in turn, exert a prospective influence on later attachment behavior. These patterns support developmental models that assume partially distinct behavioral and representational aspects of attachment that become increasingly integrated over the preschool years, and align with accounts emphasizing the guiding role of attachment representations for behavior.

Parents’ sensitivity to infant distress is critical for secure infant attachment. However, caring for an infant is often marked by uncertainty, potentially making it difficult for some mothers to be attuned with and respond sensitively to their baby. Mothers who are intolerant of uncertainty—particularly those with a history of alcohol misuse, a common way to manage uncertainty—may face challenges in providing emotionally responsive care. This study examines how difficulties managing uncertainty and past alcohol use disorder (AUD) relate to maternal parenting self-efficacy and expressions of empathy using naturalistic home-recordings. Expectant mothers (N=124) were followed over the transition to parenthood. Mothers were predominantly Hispanic/Latina (49.1%) and White (39.5%), and were economically diverse. Intolerance of uncertainty (IU) and lifetime alcohol use disorder (AUD) were assessed prenatally (T1). Mothers reported on self-efficacy at 6 weeks postpartum (T2). At 6 months (T3), maternal empathy was captured via 24-hour infant-worn audio recordings (LENA) transcribed and annotated by AI models for empathetic statements regarding the baby on a 7-point scale. Reliability tests indicated a 70-80% match with trained human coders on this empathy scale on a 48-hour subset of home-recordings. Longitudinal path models in a structural equation modeling framework tested whether parenting self-efficacy mediates associations between IU and empathy and whether AUD moderates these relations. Preliminary analyses (N=124 for T1&2; N=35 for T3) indicate that IU predicted lower parenting self-efficacy (β=-.252, p=.021), and when examining IU and empathy alone, IU unexpectedly appears to predicted greater empathy (β=.377, p=.012). However, when parenting self-efficacy is included as a mediator, IU forecasts less empathy with marginal significance (β=-.053, p=.097). Analyses will be repeated with the complete sample in March 2026. Our findings suggest that elevated maternal intolerance of uncertainty contributes to overall declines in empathy through declines in parenting self-efficacy, opening up potential avenues for intervention.

Background. Previous research has suggested that adult attachment representations influence

individuals’ caregiving behaviours. For example, adults who have had more unfavourable

recollections of their childhood and relationships with caregivers are often less sensitive and

responsive in their role as parents (Spangler et al., 2010; van IJzendoorn, 1995). In turn,

caregiving behaviours are linked to beneficial developmental outcomes for children, including

secure parent-child attachment (Madigan et al., 2024), improved language and cognitive skills

(Madigan et al., 2019), and fewer behavioural problems (Cooke et al., 2022). Although this

association has been assessed extensively, the most recent meta-analysis to do so is now over 30

years old (van IJzendoorn, 1995). Furthermore, there is a pressing need to include more diverse

samples in meta-analyses, such as clinical and low-income samples, to better capture the full

spectrum of contemporary caregiving experiences.

Methods. The present meta-analysis was conducted pursuant with PRISMA guidelines. A

literature search drew from the Adult Attachment Interview Catalogue (Nivison & Madigan,

2026), a meta-analytic catalogue of all studies utilizing the AAI. Abstracts from 1088 records

and the full-text of 151 articles were reviewed. 39 studies (N = 2990) met inclusion criteria, with

58 independent effect sizes being synthesized to examine the association between caregivers’

attachment representations (as measured by the AAI) and observed caregiving behaviours.Results. Preliminary findings showed that AAI security was moderately, positively associated

with caregiver sensitivity (r = .24, 95% C.I. [.19, .29]). Moderator analyses are planned and will

be completed in February 2026.

Conclusions. The present meta-analysis found that more favourable adult attachment

representations (measured as AAI security) were associated with greater observed caregiver

sensitivity. These findings may highlight opportunities for interventions designed to mitigate

detrimental outcomes associated with children’s exposure to negative caregiving behaviours.

Exposure to domestic violence constitutes a major challenge for children’s attachment relationships and everyday relational experiences. From a child-centered perspective, understanding how children experience and engage in interactions with different caregivers is essential to capture the relational impact of violence beyond adult reports or diagnostic categories. This poster presents the protocol of an observational study designed to examine interactional patterns in mother–child and father–child dyads, explicitly adopting the child’s perspective as the organizing framework of the research.

Children aged 6 to 11 years and their caregivers participate in structured dyadic interaction tasks that are video-recorded and analyzed using the Coding Interactive Behavior (CIB) system. Interactions are assessed separately for mother–child and father–child dyads, allowing for a descriptive comparison across four relational configurations: mother–son, mother–daughter, father–son, and father–daughter. The study adopts a descriptive observational approach aimed at identifying interactional patterns that may be differentially shaped by the context of domestic violence, without testing predefined hypotheses.

To further foreground the child’s perspective, children also take part in a semi-structured qualitative interview exploring how they understand and interpret family relationships, emotional experiences, safety, power dynamics, and gender roles. These narratives are analyzed thematically and are used to contextualize the observed interactional patterns, contributing to an interpretative reading that prioritizes children’s subjective meaning-making rather than functioning as a formal mixed-methods design.

By integrating systematic observation of caregiver–child interaction with children’s own accounts, this protocol seeks to advance an attachment-informed, child-centered understanding of relational processes in families exposed to domestic violence. The study aims to inform clinical assessment and intervention strategies that are sensitive to the child’s lived relational experience across different caregiver configurations.

Various tools are available to assess parental sensitivity. One of the most widely used in both in research and clinical practice is the Maternal behaviors Q-sort developed by Pederson and colleagues (1999). This 90-item measure documents parental sensitivity among parents of children aged 0 to 5 years. This instrument’s items, representing parental behaviors responsive to very young children’s needs, limit its application beyond this age range. After age five, parental responses and levels of responsiveness should be adjusted to factors including children’s increasing needs for autonomy and the elaboration of verbal exchanges during parent-child interactions (Borelli et al., 2016; Brumariu, 2015). To address the critical lack of assessment services for this population, this project aims to develop a Parental Behaviors Q-sort for observing parent-child interactions in the 6-to-12 years age range through two objectives. The first involves a literature review and the second involves the testing of items that will be generated.

Within the context of this presentation, the first objective is tackled. The literature review will aim 1) to develop a definition of parental sensitivity concerning the needs of children (6-12 years) using keyword syntax related to: a) parents (e.g., parental, maternal), b) sensitive behaviors (e.g., sensitiv*), and c) children aged 6-12 years or school-age (e.g., child*, pre-adolescent*), and 2) to identify existing tools/instruments that measure the concept. The search will be carried out in the following databases: MEDLINE, PsycINFO and CINAHL.

Once the literature review is completed, the concept will be defined, and the tools will be examined. Through this process, the research team will identify sensitive and insensitive parental behaviors, which will lead to item development, that will be tested in the second objective of the projet. Preliminary findings will be presented to report on the progress of the project.

Caregivers’ emotional unavailability and disengagement have been linked to children’s attachment insecurity and later mental health outcomes (Briere et al., 2017; Ziv IV et al., 2000). Although there is a growing body of research documenting the intergenerational transmission of emotional abuse, far less is known about whether perceptions of experiences of emotional neglect are similarly transmitted across generations, or whether individuals choose partners who differ from their parents in an effort to avoid repeating these experiences. Moreover, how these processes operate in fathers remains largely unexplored. Thus, the present study examined the effects of parents’ perceptions of childhood emotional neglect by their own mothers or fathers on emotionally disengaged interactions with their children at 8 and 24 months. Data were drawn from a longitudinal dataset where 126 first-time mothers and fathers, mostly white and middle SES, were followed throughout the transition to parenthood. Participants’ representations of childhood emotional neglect were assessed prenatally via the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI). Mother-child and father-child interactions were observed independently and coded for emotional disengagement. Using structural equation modeling, we found that fathers’ perception of childhood emotional neglect by their mother negatively predicted mothers’ emotional disengagement at both 8 (β = -.21, p = .008) and 24 months (β = -.23, p = .001). Moreover, mothers’ perception of childhood emotional neglect by their fathers negatively predicted fathers’ emotional disengagement at 8 months (β = -.21, p = .039). Interestingly, neglect by same-sex parents was not transmitted intergenerationally. These results highlight the importance of experiences with the opposite-sex parents. Processes underlying this transmission will be discussed. Experiencing neglect from an opposite-sex caregiver during childhood may lead adults to select more sensitive and engaged partners, or to help their partners become emotionally engaged with their children, thereby avoiding the repetition of emotionally disengaged caregiving towards their children.

Introduction. Coparenting, defined as parents’ capacity to cooperate in childrearing, is an integral part of the family system that contributes to positive child development and family dynamics. Given the importance of coparenting, it is important to consider which factors support positive coparenting relationships. A growing body of family psychology literature demonstrates that coparenting quality is negatively linked to parents’ mental health symptomatology, which could prove to be particularly relevant considering the present surge in mental health symptoms and diagnoses since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, heterogeneity in effect sizes prohibits from formulating clear, practical clinical recommendations to maximize parents’ mental health and coparenting quality, which both could promote family wellness.

Objectives. This study aimed to synthesize empirical evidence to determine if, and to what extent, coparenting is linked to parental mental health.

Methods. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analyses compliant with PRISMA guidelines. The search was conducted across six databases (PsycInfo, Embase, Medline, WoS, CINAHL, ProQuest). Inter-rater reliability was excellent for abstract (98%) and full-text screening (97%). A total of 144 studies (669 effect sizes) examining associations between coparenting and parental mental health were identified. Fathers (M = 36.1 years old) and mothers (M = 34.1 years old) were mostly White and from a mid-high socioeconomic status. Effect sizes were pooled using random-effects multilevel meta-analyses.

Results and Conclusions. Coparenting showed a small-to-moderate correlation with parents’ anxiety (122 effect sizes; N = 23,485; r = -.17), and moderate correlations with parental depression (459 effect sizes; N = 9,544; r = -.21) and global measures of mental health symptomatology (88 effect sizes; N = 23,485; r = -.21). These findings indicate an association between parental mental health and coparenting quality. Given the correlational nature of meta-analyses, longitudinal studies are needed, but the findings suggest clinicians should consider parental mental health to support coparenting.

The mechanisms of intergenerational transmission of maltreatment (ITM) are poorly understood. Psychological distress (PD, e.g., depressive and anxiety) is a mediating mechanism of ITM (Dixon et al., 2005; Yang et al., 2018), but this role is not shown across studies, and results vary depending on child maltreatment type (e.g., Berlin et al., 2011). PD and parent-child relationship quality are also sequential mediators of ITM (Langevin et al., 2022), suggesting that parental behaviors could sequentially be related to PD in understanding ITM. However, these studies were mainly conducted with parents and very young children of the general population, limiting ITM knowledge in high-risk contexts. Among high-risk parents, parental childhood maltreatment has been associated with PD and, in turn, with more disrupted parental behaviors (e.g., withdrawal, role confusion; Cognard-Bessette et al., 2025).

This study examines whether PD and disrupted parental behaviors are sequential mediators of ITM, for child physical abuse, psychological abuse, and neglect. The sample comprised 115 high-risk families receiving services from child protection or community agencies. Parents completed a 1) socio-demographic questionnaire, 2) the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (Bernstein, 1994), 3) the Brief Symptoms Inventory (Derogatis, 1983), and 3) the Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale (Strauss et al., 1998). Coding of parental disrupted behavior with the AMBIANCE-Brief (Haltigan et al., 2019) is underway and will be completed in time to present full sequential mediation results at IAC.

Preliminary results show significant associations between childhood trauma and PD (b=.18), and between PD and child neglect (b=.58), psychological abuse (b=.59), and physical abuse (b=.41). Indirect effects of childhood trauma are also found on neglect (b =.10, [.03,.20]) and psychological abuse (b=.11, [.01,.24]), but not on physical abuse (b=.07, [-.003,.20]). Findings suggest that PD is an ITM mechanism. Further analyses will reveal whether parental disrupted behaviors also intervene in ITM, potentially representing another intervention target.

Caregivers’ resolution of their children’s autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis positively impacts caregivers’ and children’s wellbeing (Sher-Censor et al., 2022). Parenting stress related to ASD-challenges may distract caregivers from children’s strengths (Silva & Schalock, 2012), while secure base scripts (SBS), social support, and formal services may facilitate attunement to children’s needs and thus diagnosis understanding/acceptance (e.g., Sheeran et al., 1997). Further, mothers and fathers might vary in how they parent and use support following their children’s diagnosis (McStay & Dissanayake, 2013). Thus, we evaluated whether 1) greater parental resolution would relate to less autism parenting stress and greater SBS, social support, and use of formal services; and 2) these relations would vary by caregiver gender. 98 caregivers (n_males=56) of children with ASD completed questionnaires assessing resolution, autism parenting stress, social support (from family, friends, and a significant other [e.g., romantic partner]), and use of formal services, and an interview (Waters & Waters, 2006) scored for SBS (ICCs=.82–.92). Greater resolution was significantly associated with lower autism parenting stress and greater SBS, social support from family and friends, and use of formal services (rs ranged between -.41 and .25, ps≤.05). Autism parenting stress and use of formal services uniquely predicted resolution (β= -.42 and .30, ps<.01). SBS and social support from friends were more strongly associated with maternal than paternal resolution (z= -2.39 and -3.36, ps<.05). Results suggest that script-like representations of sensitive and responsive caregiving facilitate caregivers' understanding of and adaptation to their children's ASD diagnosis. Further, caregivers experiencing greater stress have more difficulties reaching resolution, possibly because of preoccupations with their children’s weaknesses. However, formal services (i.e., therapy) and friends and family support may empower caregivers to manage ASD-challenges and shift expectations about parental roles and children’s development. Interestingly, attachment scripts and friends’ support were particularly beneficial for mothers.

Mothers’ emotion reappraisal (ER) contributes to their children’s regulatory development directly and indirectly through its effects on positive parenting behaviors (Zimmer-Gembeck et al., 2022). However, few studies have examined the role of fathers’ reappraisal in supporting their partner’s engagement in responsive caregiving and promoting favorable child outcomes. It is expected that mothers' and fathers’ ER impacts coparenting quality and maternal sensitivity. Thus, examining the effects of each parent's ER on family functioning clarifies pathways through which child dysregulation may be minimized.

Data from a diverse sample of mother-father-child triads (N=119) were collected from community clinics in central Texas. At 4 months postpartum, mothers’ (Mage=31.21) and fathers’ (Mage=35.61) ER and mothers’ view of undermining coparenting were reported. At 10 months, maternal sensitivity was observed. At 12-15 months, child dysregulation was assessed.

Structural equation modeling revealed that only mothers’ ER indirectly predicted child dysregulation through maternal sensitivity, but effects differed by mothers’ perceptions of partners’ undermining coparenting (β= -0.130, p=0.049). Mothers who reported high levels of undermining but also had high ER were able to remain highly sensitive with their 10-month-olds compared to those with high ER and low levels of undermining. Greater sensitivity was associated with less child dysregulation. Analyses also indicated that, unlike mothers', fathers’ ER was positively related with children’s dysregulation (β=0.524, p=0.001) and was marginally mediated through maternal sensitivity (β= -0.197, p=0.070), suggesting fathers’ reappraisal methods may be less adaptive for children. Our model explained 34% of the variance in child dysregulation and 60% of that in maternal sensitivity (R2 = 0.34; 0.604).

Findings highlight the role of fathers’ ER and coparenting in the relation between maternal reappraisal, sensitivity, and child regulation. Future directions and implications for family systems will be discussed.

Background: Self-compassion is a psychological resource associated with emotional well-being, reduced self-criticism, and adaptive coping. The Self-Compassion Scale Short Form has been validated in several populations, but not for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Differences in cognitive processing, language comprehension, and self-reflection may limit the extent to which existing factor structures generalise to this population. This study evaluates the psychometric properties of the Self-Compassion Scale Short Form in individuals with mild intellectual disability.

Methods: Participants with mild to borderline intellectual disabilities (n = 53) completed the self-compassion scale and measures of anxiety, depression, self-esteem, coping, loneliness, and perceived stigma. Questionnaires were administered using accessible procedures (e.g. simplified language, support where needed, and flexible response formats). Principal Component Analysis was used to examine component structure, alongside analyses of internal consistency and construct validity.

Results: Principal Component Analysis indicated that a two-component structure best fit the data, accounting for 49.04% of the total variance. Item loadings did not align with the theoretically proposed framework, with only three items loading on the second component. Internal consistency of the total scale was acceptable (Cronbach’s α = .76). Construct validity analyses indicated partial convergent validity, with self-compassion showing expected positive associations with self-esteem, while associations with coping and loneliness were weaker than anticipated. Discriminant validity was supported, as associations with anxiety, depression, and perceived stigma were small.

Conclusions: The observed component structure and limited construct validity suggest that the scale may not fully capture self-compassion as currently conceptualised for this population. These findings may reflect measurement limitations but also raise the possibility that self-compassion is experienced or expressed differently in individuals with intellectual disability, given differences in cognition, language comprehension, and self-reflection. Overall, the results underscore the need for further adaptation and validation of self-compassion measures to support inclusive mental health research.

Obesity is a chronic disease with a highly complex etiology, characterized by excessive fat deposits associated with numerous somatic and psychosocial risks (WHO, 2024). A growing number of studies link emotional regulation and psychophysiological reactivity to stress and obesity (Braet & van Strien, 1997; Roemmich et al., 2007; Dallman, 2010). With the aim of better understanding the interactions and mechanisms that promote the development of obesogenic behaviors among children (0-18 years old), a systematic review of the literature was conducted, synthesizing multifactorial data from studies and reviews including relational variables such as : parental attachment style, strategies for coping with children's negative emotions, and feeding practices. The PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines were applied to our review methodology. The results indicate that a secure attachment style is associated with sensitive and supportive feeding practices and parental responses, whereas insecure attachment styles are associated with insensitive feeding practices and parental responses. The quality of parental responses influences feeding practices and child food consumption. In conclusion, this systematic review suggests that the quality of parental attachment is a key determinant of the risk of childhood obesity. Strengthening the security of the parent-child attachment is a promising therapeutic lever for the prevention of childhood obesity.

Background: Emotional regulation is a fundamental skill for psychological well-being and social competence, deeply rooted in early socialization and the parent-child attachment bond. Although research has demonstrated a significant association between parents’ attachment style and their children’s emotional regulation skills, the underlying associations are yet to be explicited. While attachment theory establishes the parent as an external regulator, the broader influence of family organization, specifically family rituals, remain less understood. This study aims to bridge this gap by investigating the interplay between parents’ attachment styles, family rituals, and children’s emotional regulation capacities. Method: For this, a total of 64 French mothers and 68 children, aged 3 to 6 years, were assessed in a home visit setting. We present data on parental attachment dimensions, assessed using the Relationship Style Questionnaire (RSQ; Griffin & Bartholomew, 1994); examine their influence on the quality of family rituals, measured by the Family Rituals Questionnaire (FRQ; Fiese & Kline, 1993); and children’s emotional self-regulation abilities, assessed by the Emotion Regulation Checklist (Shields & Cicchetti, 1997). Results: The findings, still in analysis, are intended to inform educational and therapeutic interventions, highlighting how strengthening family rituals can support adaptive emotional regulation in children and enhance overall family well-being. Discussion: By assessing these variables, our study helps to identify how the symbolic value of rituals acts as a unique mechanism in the intergenerational transmission of emotional competencies. Our study underscores the importance of moving beyond dyadic interactions to consider the symbolic structure of family life as a critical context for development.

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is characterized by altered emotional processing, reduced positive affect, and neurobiological dysconnectivity across large-scale brain networks. Prior research has shown decreased connectivity within the frontoparietal network—central for cognitive and emotional control—and increased connectivity within the default mode network (DMN), associated with self-referential processing (Kaiser et al., 2015; Krug et al., 2022). Social support has emerged as a critical protective factor influencing the severity and trajectory of MDD, yet its neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. In healthy individuals, greater social support correlates with altered resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in regions underlying self-reflection, stress regulation, and social cognition, including the frontal pole, posterior cingulate cortex, and hippocampus (Khudeish et al., 2024). This proof-of-concept study investigates whether similar patterns are present in MDD and how social support dynamically shapes connectivity patterns over time.

Using data from the FOR2107 consortium (Kircher et al., 2019), we analyze a longitudinal rsFC dataset comprising 700 MDD patients and 500 healthy controls assessed at baseline, 2-year, and 5-year follow-ups. Participants completed a comprehensive clinical and psychological battery assessing social support, emotion regulation, and resilience. Functional connectivity will be computed across established whole-brain parcellations, focusing on networks involved in emotion regulation, social cognition, and resilience. A 2×3 repeated-measures ANOVA will evaluate longitudinal changes and interactions between social support and rsFC.

We hypothesize that higher perceived social support will correspond to increased within-network connectivity in emotion regulation and social cognition regions (e.g., frontal pole, anterior cingulate), and that social support will positively moderate the relationship between resilience and rsFC. Identifying these connectivity patterns may advance our understanding of how social factors contribute to neural resilience mechanisms in MDD and inform targets for network-based interventions.

Objective. Adolescence represents a critical developmental period during which child-caregiver attachment evolves. Insecure attachment patterns (i.e., anxious and avoidant attachment), are associated with increased risk of psychopathology, including internalizing and externalizing problems, highlighting the need for reliable assessment. The Adolescent Attachment Anxiety & Avoidance Inventory (A4I) Short Form is a 16-item measure of adolescent–caregiver attachment; however, its psychometric properties have not been established in community samples. This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the A4I in a community sample of adolescents.

Methods. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were conducted in MPlus to evaluate the factor structure of the 16 A4I items completed by 1,353 individuals from a community sample (53% female, 5.8% trans+; 72% White; mean age 15.74 years). Attachment (A4I) was assessed, and internal reliability and convergent validity were examined using measures of affect dysregulation and suppression (ARC), abuse (CTS-2), and psychopathology (OCHS).

Results. The EFA supported a two-factor structure (χ² = 1036.553; RMSEA = 0.089; CFI = 0.928), though item 12 loaded onto both factors. The CFA supported a two-factor model with improved fit following removal of item 12 (χ² = 1176.081; RMSEA = 0.095; CFI = 0.892) representing anxious and avoidant attachment. Internal consistency was high for anxiety (α = .87) and avoidance (α = .93) subscales. Bivariate correlations supported convergent validity, with attachment avoidance displaying moderate associations with internalizing and externalizing symptoms, abuse, and affect suppression (r = .24 - .42, p < .001). While attachment anxiety demonstrated moderate associations with internalizing symptoms, abuse, and affect dysregulation (r = .41 - .48, p < .001).

Discussion. Findings suggest the A4I is a reliable and valid measure of attachment in a community sample, though item 12 warrants further review. Sensitivity to abuse, psychopathologies, and affect regulation difficulties supports its utility for attachment research.

Background: Attachment researchers can now employ technological advances to assess, code and analyse attachment and related concepts. This can facilitate research on long-standing questions such as those regarding the natural development of attachment. This study is the first step in a large data collection project that uses automatically processed, home-collected data through cameras, microphones and electrocardiographs (ECG) to understand the formation, stabilization, and specification of attachment patterns during infancy. By exploring parents’ perspectives on the social and practical acceptability of this approach, this study aims to provide insight that will guide the setup of the subsequent phases of the project. Methods: Three families with a first-born between 4-13 months participated in 6-8 hours daily recordings for 3-4 days. After, parents shared their experiences via 1–hour, structured online interviews, analysed with thematic analysis to explore the social and practical acceptability of the approach. Findings: Preliminary findings indicated that thoughts like “how does it [attachment] start?”, “I am your target population!” along with related professional interests drove parents to participate. Further, the ECG device was negatively perceived as medical, while one parent almost stopped using it due to the inconvenience that caused to the baby. Moreover, a parent did not work from home to avoid their meetings being recorded, while parents appeared to be concerned about raising their voice to pets or their baby. Furthermore, participants described automatic data handling as funny, wondering how computers understand humans, relieving in terms of avoiding a “Big Brother type panel”, or indifferent given that privacy is guaranteed. Finally, obtaining consent from third parties such as visitors was not clear, resulting in postponing a visit, or asking for verbal consent. Conclusions: Despite privacy concerns and practical inconvenience, parents’ curiosity and receptiveness might be able to counterbalance these issues supporting the overall acceptability of the study.

Prosocial behavior emerges early in development and is considered a universal feature of human development; however, less is known about how distinct forms of prosocial behavior, such as helping and sharing, are expressed during infancy and how individual differences shape their early emergence. Previous research (Dunfield et al., 2011, 2014) has called for more systematic examination of early prosociality, particularly beyond Western samples and with attention to temperamental characteristics. The present study examines the early expression of instrumental helping and sharing behaviors in children between 18 and 24 months of age and explores their associations with temperament. Participants were 74 children (54% girls; M age = 21.25 months, SD = 2.00) recruited as part of a larger study on infant attachment with mothers and fathers in Chile. Prosocial behavior was assessed using five observational tasks adapted from Warneken and Tomasello (2007) and Dunfield et al. (2011). Temperament dimensions (surgency, effortful control, and negative affect) were obtained via caregiver report using the ECBQ-R Very Short Form. Results indicated substantial variability in instrumental helping across tasks, with helping rates ranging from 36.5% to 78.4% and a mean helping score of 3.18 (SD = 2.19). Sharing behavior was observed in 38.9% of children (M = 1.78, SD = 2.68). No differences emerged by child sex, childcare attendance, or parent present during the procedure . Helping and sharing were not significantly associated with one another, nor were they related to child's age or maternal education. Surgency was positively associated with instrumental helping (r = .33, p = .01), whereas no other temperament dimensions were linked to prosocial behavior. Findings highlight the heterogeneity of early prosocial behaviors during the second year of life and suggest that temperamental activity and approach tendencies may support early helping behaviors.

Secure attachment relationships are thought to support young people to adaptively navigate the dynamic socioemotional changes which characterise adolescence. However, while the role of security in early childhood has been examined extensively, less is known about how attachment processes during adolescence shape later development. Here, this is examined through a longitudinal investigation of social skills, social support, and caregiver monitoring as potential pathways linking adolescent-caregiver attachment security with subsequent adjustment.

In a sample of 153 adolescent-caregiver dyads, attachment security was assessed observationally at age 13 using the Goal-Corrected Partnership in Adolescence Coding System (GPACS) which captures security as it is enacted within dyadic interaction. Structural equation modelling was used to examine pathways from adolescent-caregiver attachment security to youth outcomes at age 15, assessed via self- and teacher-report.

Adolescents in more secure attachment relationships at age 13 showed lower levels of both internalising and externalising symptoms two years later, with each association partly accounted for by stronger social skills (B = -0.07, p = .017; B = -0.05, p = .035). Secure adolescents also reported higher perceived social support (B = 0.15, p = .029), and higher social support was associated with increased substance use risk (B = 0.21, p = .010). However, the indirect pathway from attachment security to substance use risk via social support was not statistically significant (B = 0.03, p = .128).

These findings suggest that observed attachment security in adolescent-caregiver interactions is linked to the development of important social skills, with long-term implications for mental health. They also highlight the complex role of social support in adolescence, the developmental significance of which may vary by context. This underscores the ongoing importance of attachment relationships beyond childhood and points to interactional processes which may be effective targets for intervention.

Rational : During Covid-19 lockdowns, lives of families changed, having to cohabit with each other uninterruptedly. In this context, a Consortium composed by researchers from the USA, France, Portugal, Canada, South Korea, India and Italy, proposed a COVID-19 Health Impact Survey, aiming to assess some of the psychological effects of COVID lockdown on parents and young children. In this presentation, we’ll present French data assessing lockdowns longitudinal impact on dyadic variables. Methods: From July (T1) to December 2020 (T6), the French team measured maternal anxiety, depression, and stress (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21), children anxiety (Preschool Anxiety Scale-R), emotional regulation (Emotion Regulation Checklist), attachment quality (Attachment Behavior Perceptions - Mother) and parental attachment quality (Relationship Scales Questionnaire - CR), of 148 dyads with children aged less than 7 y-o. Results: Comparing to normative samples, at inclusion: a) maternal depression, anxiety and stress were lower; b) children emotional regulation and liability were equivalent ; c) children’s global security, secure base and affects sharing behaviours were higher; d) children with insecure parents had lower emotional regulation, higher emotional lability and higher affects sharing behaviors. From a longitudinal perspective, at T6 : a) maternal depression, anxiety and stress decreased with time; and b) children general and separation anxiety decreased over time. Nevertheless, these results should be taken with precaution, since social desirability was particularly high in insecure mothers. Discussion: Unlike our expectations, these results seem to indicate that families adapted well during the COVID stressful context. Moreover, the confinement experience seemed to have helped insecure mothers to better regulate their emotions and their children's. We suppose that it was because they felt safer despite the stress and risks associated with the coronavirus.