Attention and attachment related behavior toward professional caregivers in child care centers: a new measure for toddlers.
The authors attempted to develop and validate the Toddler Attention Questionnaire (TAQ) by examining the relationship between attention and attachment to a professional caregiver. The psychometric reliability and validity of the TAQ was tested with 72 children ranging from 20 to 36 months old. Attentive processes were also measured by the Italian Questionnaire on Temperament, while attachment behaviors to professional caregivers were measured by the Attachment Q-Sort. Factor analysis supported four identifiable factors reflecting different concepts, theoretically discussed, related to attentive processes: attentive flexibility, attentive lability, attentive detachment, and attentive disorientation. Attachment security to professional caregivers is predicted through attentive flexibility and negative emotionality. Secure attachment behaviors were found to be related to flexibility of attention. The implications of the findings for future theoretical and empirical development of research in this field are also discussed.
Department of Educational Science, University Roma Tre, Italy.
Susanna
S
Pallini
Fiorenzo
F
Laghi
D001288:Attention; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D002656:Child Day Care Centers; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009769:Object Attachment; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011779:Q-Sort; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013694:Temperament