Maternal sensitivity to infant distress and nondistress as predictors of infant-mother attachment security.

TLDR

Attachment theory posits that maternal sensitivity to infant distress is crucial for forming secure attachments. Using the NICHD Study of Early Child Care, researchers coded maternal sensitivity to distress and nondistress in 357 dyads at 6 months and 230 at 15 months, then assessed attachment security at 15 months with the Strange Situation. Logistic regression showed that higher sensitivity to distress at 6 months increased the odds of secure attachment, whereas 15‑month sensitivity was not predictive, underscoring the early‑infancy protective role of distress sensitivity.

Abstract

In considering Bowlby's (1969/1982) conceptualization of attachment as a "biobehavioral safety-regulating system," Goldberg, Grusec, & Jenkins (1999) proposed that maternal sensitivity to infant distress may be particularly relevant to the formation of a secure attachment relationship. Data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care provided a unique opportunity to address this question as maternal sensitivity to nondistress and distress were each coded for 357 mother-infant dyads at 6 months and 230 dyads at 15 months from videotaped observations of mother-infant play sessions. Attachment security was assessed in the Strange Situation at 15 months. Logistic regression analyses indicated that greater sensitivity to distress (but not greater sensitivity to nondistress) at 6 months was associated with increased odds of being classified as secure. The 15-month sensitivity measures were nonsignificant predictors of security. The results support the notion that the protective function of the child-mother attachment relationship may be especially salient during early infancy.