title: Child-mother attachments in the face of grandparent HIV.
abstract: Child-mother attachment, as observed in the Strange Situation (SSP), was assessed in 61 families affected by HIV and 18 neighborhood comparison families not affected by HIV, but of similar ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Children were aged one to three years at the assessment. Secure attachment was significantly less likely among children in the HIV-affected group than among comparison group children (36% versus 67%). The most common pattern of attachment in the HIV-affected group was disorganized/disoriented, observed in 41% of children (versus 22% of comparison children). Children from families that included a surviving grandparent with HIV showed disorganized attachments more often than children whose grandparents died (53% versus 36%). Child attachment classifications were not associated with families' participation in a family-based, cognitive-behavioral HIV intervention. These results document the inter-generational impact of young mothers' who were growing up with an HIV-infected parent. These findings suggest that families affected by HIV may benefit from interventions that address attachment issues.
authors.affiliation: a Weill Cornell Medicine , New York , NY , USA.
authors.forename: Mary J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.affiliation: b University of Minnesota , Minneapolis , MN , USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Carlson
authors.affiliation: c University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lester
authors.affiliation: c University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Leila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Beckwith
authors.affiliation: c University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Marian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sigman
authors.affiliation: c University of California, Los Angeles , Los Angeles , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Mary Jane
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Rotheram-Borus
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D000066502:Grandparents / Q000523:psychology*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D009769:Object Attachment; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Attachment; HIV; at-risk population; parent–child interactions