Conference Agenda

The literature on parenting effects on the development of attachment to mother and father shows three positions. The sensitivity position suggests that caregiving sensitivity predicts attachment quality to mother and (with lower effect sizes) also to father. The challenging parenting position suggests that fathers’ challenging or activating parenting during play is more typical for fathering and a better predictor for attachment to father compared to mother. The sensitive challenging position suggests that sensitive challenging autonomy support during play but not sensitivity is a specific predictor of attachment to father (Grossmann et al., 2002). In research, the domain and the context of parenting (caregiving vs. play) are rarely separated. In a sample of N=225 mothers and fathers we observed sensitivity during caregiving (Ainsworth scale), sensitive challenging caregiving during play (SCIP scale), and challenging caregiving during activating play. Attachment was assessed using the SSP. In addition, crying during the SSP was coded to compare the infants’ stress elicited by the SSP with mother and father. The current study replicates and expands the Grossmann et al. (2002) study on the association of sensitivity or sensitive challenging behavior with attachment to mother and father. In addition, infants cry longer and nearly twice as intense with mothers compared to fathers during the SSP, especially during reunion. Results are discussed comparing the three parenting positions, the context of parenting, and the potential role of crying as attachment behavior with mothers and fathers.

In this exploratory study we examined whether the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP), which has been successfully used for assessing attachment of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their mothers, was also applicable for assessing attachment of children with ASD with fathers. In a sample of 79 preschooler boys with ASD, 40 were randomly selected to be observed in the SSP with their mothers and 39 were randomly selected to be observed with their fathers. Children's cognitive functioning and symptoms were assessed, as were parents' psychological distress and Broad Autism Phenotype. Unexpectedly, the SSP was found to be not applicable (NA) to 25% of the SSPs observed with fathers because no or very minimal levels of attachment behavior were observed, but all SSPs with mothers were codable. Children coded NA had lower cognitive functioning and more severe symptoms than those not so coded. Children classified as insecure with their fathers had more severe symptoms than those classified secure, but were not significantly different in their cognitive functioning. No associations between attachment with mother and severity of symptoms/cognitive functioning were found. Furthermore, no significant associations emerged between attachment and parents' psychological distress or Broad Autism Phenotype. The study raises questions regarding the applicability of the SSP to assess attachment with fathers in children with ASD.

Attachment theory posits that early child-caregiver relationships shape socioemotional development. Social competence has received particular attention both because it is theoretically expected to be shaped by early attachment relationships and due to its well-established associations with children’s mental health and adjustment. However, most research has examined a single child-parent relationship, typically the child-mother dyad, overlooking the simultaneous attachment relationships many children form with other significant caregivers

In this study, we used individual participant data (IPD) meta-analysis to test whether mother-child and father-child attachment configurations uniquely predict children’s social competence.

This pre-registered two-step IPD meta-analysis included studies that assessed child attachment relationships with both mothers and fathers using observational measures, and children’s social competence using parent, teacher, or observer reports. Effects computed for 16 studies, comprising 1,585 children, were synthesized using multilevel random-effects models. Attachment classifications with mothers and fathers were grouped into secure/insecure (i.e., secure with both parents; secure only with mothers; secure only with fathers; insecure with both) and organized/disorganized attachment configurations.

Children with two insecure attachment relationships displayed significantly lower social competence than those with one or two secure attachment relationships (g = 0.20, 95% CI [0.04, 0.35]). No differences emerged between children with one versus two secure attachment relationships, suggesting that one secure attachment relationship may buffer against the risks of having two insecure attachments for children’s social competence. Organized/disorganized attachment configurations were not significantly associated with social competence. Across attachment configurations, mother-child and father-child attachment relationships quality did not differentially predict social competence, supporting the comparable importance of attachment relationships with both parents in predicting key developmental outcomes. Taken together, this study advances a family-systems understanding of how early relationships shape development.

There is no paper 4- Dr. Miriam Steele is the Discussant.