Security of attachment and preschool friendships.
Attachment theory proposes that the quality of the mother-child tie predicts the quality of a child's other close relationships. The purpose of this study was to test whether security of attachment to mother is related to the quality of a preschooler's best friendships. 33 4-year-old and their best friends participated (mean age = 46 months). Attachment Q-set data were collected to score security of mother-child attachment. Security data were used to classify the friend pairs as secure-secure or secure-insecure. Best friend dyads were observed for a 1-hour free-play session. Each pair's behavior was described with the Dyadic Relationships Q-set, a measure designed to describe the behavior of a pair of children. Secure-secure pairs were more harmonious, less controlling, more responsive, and happier than secure-insecure pairs. The results are related to previous work on attachment and social competence.
Park
K A
KA
Department of Psychology, Kent State-University, OH 44242.
Waters
E
E
D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009769:Object Attachment; D010379:Peer Group; D010988:Play and Playthings; D002666:Psychology, Child