A longitudinal study of the relation between representations of attachment in childhood and cognitive functioning in childhood and adolescence.

Abstract

Eighty-five Icelandic children (41 girls and 44 boys) participated in a study on the relations among attachment representations, self-confidence, and cognitive functioning in childhood and adolescence. Attachment representations and self-confidence were assessed at age 7 on the basis of children's responses to a separation story and observations made by independent observers. Cognitive functioning was measured at ages 7, 9, 12, 15, and 17 years based on a battery of Piagetian tasks assessing concrete and formal reasoning. Children with a secure attachment representation were favored in their cognitive performance in childhood and adolescence. Children with an insecuredisorganized attachment representation were particularly disadvantaged on deductive reasoning tasks. Self-confidence played a significant but varying role in mediating the effects of attachment representations on cognitive functioning. The study controlled for IQ and attention difficulties.

Playing with reality: IV. A theory of external reality rooted in intersubjectivity

“…Jacobsen et al, 1994;Jacobsen et al, 1997). (The loving background offered to children adopted from abroad may give them a highly significant IQ advantage relative to the children who were not adopted; Bimmel et al, 2003).…”

Reconsidering Attachment in Context of Culture: Review of Attachment Studies in Japan

“…Kaplan's SAT has been successfully utilized in several European countries (Easterbrooks & Abeles, 2000;Granqvist, Ljungdahl, & Dickie, 2007;Jacobsen, Edelstein, & Hofmann, 1994;Jacobsen & Hofmann, 1997;Ziegenhain & Jacobsen, 1999), but not in Asia. A diverse language such as Japanese presented an array of problems when translating children's responses.…”

Specialist Communication Skills for Social Workers

“…Modern attachment theorists have explored the importance of the parent-child attachment relationship in the way the mind processes interpersonal information to use as a psychosocial template for future relationships (Howe, 2005). Researchers have linked difficult early attachment relationships to children showing aggressive and disruptive behaviour, and adolescents who have anxiety disorders and/or impaired operational skills and self-regulation (Sroufe, 1983;Speltz et al, 1990;Lyons-Ruth et al, 1993;Jacobsen et al, 1994;Shaw et al, 1996;Warren et al, 1997). Neglected children show social and emotional difficulties as well as differences in brain size and structure (Hildyard and Wolfe, 2002;Perry, 2002).…”