Attachment narratives and behavioral and emotional symptoms in an ethnically diverse, at-risk sample.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the clinical correlates and predictions from attachment narratives in a sample of early school-age children from a high psychosocial risk, ethnically diverse sample.


METHODS
A total of 113 children were assessed using the Manchester Child Attachment Story Task, a semistructured assessment of children's attachment representations. Parents and teachers provided data using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Peer nominations of popularity and antisocial behavior were also obtained.


RESULTS
Significant associations that were modest to moderate in magnitude were obtained between attachment narrative scales indexing security, coherence, and disorganization with multiple indices of children's behavioral and emotional adjustment, prosocial behavior and competence; these associations held across ethnic groups and were independent of psychosocial risk.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings build on and extend support for the use of attachment narrative assessments in the clinical context and demonstrate their applicability and validity across a broad range of ethnicity and social contexts.
Futh
Annabel
A
Ms. Futh and Drs. Matias and Scott are with King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry; Dr. O'Connor is with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center; and Dr. Green is with the University of Manchester.. Electronic address: Tom_OConnor@URMC.Rochester.edu.
O'Connor
Thomas G
TG
Ms. Futh and Drs. Matias and Scott are with King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry; Dr. O'Connor is with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center; and Dr. Green is with the University of Manchester.
Matias
Carla
C
Ms. Futh and Drs. Matias and Scott are with King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry; Dr. O'Connor is with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center; and Dr. Green is with the University of Manchester.
Green
Jonathan
J
Ms. Futh and Drs. Matias and Scott are with King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry; Dr. O'Connor is with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center; and Dr. Green is with the University of Manchester.
Scott
Stephen
S
Ms. Futh and Drs. Matias and Scott are with King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry; Dr. O'Connor is with the Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center; and Dr. Green is with the University of Manchester.
D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004739:England; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D033262:Narration; D010379:Peer Group; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010988:Play and Playthings; D011204:Poverty Areas; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019962:Reactive Attachment Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012963:Sociometric Techniques