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Article
Emotion Socialization as a Framework for Understanding the Development of Disorganized Attachment
Social Development
  • Carey Anne DeOliveira, London Health Sciences Centre, London, ON, Canada
  • Heidi Neufeld Bailey, University of Guelph
  • Greg Moran, The University of Western Ontario
  • David R. Pederson, The University of Western Ontario
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-1-2004
URL with Digital Object Identifier
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2004.00276.x
Abstract

Recent years have seen the emergence of accounts of the origins of the Disorganized attachment relationship in early mother–infant interaction, each building on the pioneering work of Main and Hesse—dysfunctional emotional processes figure prominently in all these accounts. This paper applies a framework based on two complementary theories of emotion socialization, Gianino and Tronick's (1992) Mutual Regulation Model and Gergely and Watson's (1996) Social Biofeedback Theory, to suggest an emotion-based mechanism consistent with recently proposed models of the development of Disorganized attachment. The framework is used to generate hypothetical accounts of the role of dysfunctional emotional processes and maladaptive emotion socialization in early mother–infant interaction in the development of Disorganized attachment along two distinct pathways, one associated with actual abuse of the infant and the other associated with maternal unresolved trauma.

Citation Information
Carey Anne DeOliveira, Heidi Neufeld Bailey, Greg Moran and David R. Pederson. "Emotion Socialization as a Framework for Understanding the Development of Disorganized Attachment" Social Development Vol. 13 Iss. 3 (2004) p. 437 - 467
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/gregmoran/28/