title: Infant attachment, adult attachment, and maternal sensitivity: revisiting the intergenerational transmission gap.
abstract: This study investigated the intergenerational transmission of attachment, utilizing the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI), the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP), and the Maternal Behavioral Q-Set (MBQS). We revisited fundamental questions in attachment theory and research by examining: (1) the level of intergenerational agreement between maternal attachment representations and infant attachment security, and (2) whether maternal sensitivity serves as an intergenerational mediator between adult and infant attachment security. Significant categorical matches between the AAI and the SSP as well as mean differences for MBQS scores between adult attachment secure-insecure groups were found. Consistent with earlier intergenerational research, maternal sensitivity only partially mediated the AAI-SSP link, indicating the transmission gap remains. Consistent with recent mediation studies, using more contemporary analytical techniques, it was confirmed that maternal sensitivity did mediate the direct pathway between AAI security and SSP security. Thus, the transmission gap appears somewhat different depending on the statistical method used to measure mediation. Post hoc analyses considered mothers' childhood experiences of separation/divorce and this helped make sense of intergenerational mismatches.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences , State University of New York Polytechnic Institute , Utica , NY , USA.
authors.forename: Kazuko Y
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Behrens
authors.affiliation: b Faculty of Education & Faculty of Social Sciences , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , ON , Canada.
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Haltigan
authors.affiliation: c Psychology Departments , American River College and Cosumnes River College , Sacramento , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Naomi I Gribneau
authors.initials: NI
authors.lastname: Bahm
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001722:Birth Order; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008423:Maternal Age; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D009769:Object Attachment; D011582:Psychological Theory; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Adult Attachment Interview; Attachment; Strange Situation; intergenerational transmission; maternal sensitivity