title: Assessing attachment security with the Attachment Q Sort: meta-analytic evidence for the validity of the observer AQS.
abstract: The reliability and validity of the Attachment Q Sort (AQS; Waters & Deane, 1985) was tested in a series of meta-analyses on 139 studies with 13,835 children. The observer AQS security score showed convergent validity with Strange Situation procedure (SSP) security (r = .31) and excellent predictive validity with sensitivity measures (r = .39). Its association with temperament was weaker (r = .16), which supports the discriminant validity of the observer AQS. Studies on the stability of the observer AQS are still relatively scarce but they have yielded promising results (mean r = .28; k = 4, n = 162). It is concluded that the observer AQS, but not the self-reported AQS, is a valid measure of attachment.
authors.affiliation: Center for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, The Netherlands. vanijzen@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
authors.forename: Marinus H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: van IJzendoorn
authors.forename: Carolus M J L
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Vereijken
authors.forename: Marian J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Bakermans-Kranenburg
authors.forename: J Marianne
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Riksen-Walraven
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D009769:Object Attachment; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013694:Temperament