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Article
Disorganized Attachment in Infancy: A Review of the Phenomenon and Its Implications for Clinicians and Policy-Makers
Journal of Attachment & Human Development
  • Pehr Granqvist, Stockholm University
  • L. Alan Sroufe, University of Minnesota
  • Mary Dozier, University of Delaware
  • Erik Hesse, University of California, Berkeley
  • Miriam Steele, The New School
  • Marinus Van Ljzendoorn, Erasmus University Rotterdam
  • Judith Solomon, University of Cambridge
  • Carlo Schuengel, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
  • Pasco Fearon, University College of London
  • Marian Bakermans-Kranenburg, Leiden University
  • Howard Steele
  • Jude Cassidy
  • Elizabeth Carlson
  • Sheri Madigan
  • Deborah Jacobvitz
  • Sarah Foster
  • Kazuko Behrens
  • Anne Rifkin-Graboi
  • Naomi Gribneau
  • Gottfried Spangler
  • Mary Ward
  • Mary True, Saint Mary's College of California
  • Susan Spieker
  • Sophie Reijman
  • Samantha Reisz
  • Anne Tharner
  • Frances Nkara
  • Ruth Goldwyn
  • June Sroufe
  • David Pederson
  • Deanne Pederson
  • Robert Weigand
  • Daniel Siegel
  • Nino Dazzi
  • Kristin Bernard
  • Peter Fonagy
  • Everett Waters
  • Sheree Toth
  • Dante Cicchetti
  • Charles Zeanah
  • Karlen Lyons-Ruth
  • Mary Main
  • Robbie Dischinsky
SMC Author
Mary True
Status
Faculty
School
School of Science
Department
Psychology
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2017
Description/Abstract

Disorganized/Disoriented (D) attachment has seen widespread interest from policy makers, practitioners, and clinicians in recent years. However, some of this interest seems to have been based on some false assumptions that (1) attachment measures can be used as definitive assessments of the individual in forensic/child protection settings and that disorganized attachment (2) reliably indicates child maltreatment, (3) is a strong predictor of pathology, and (4) represents a fixed or static "trait" of the child, impervious to development or help. This paper summarizes the evidence showing that these four assumptions are false and misleading. The paper reviews what is known about disorganized infant attachment and clarifies the implications of the classification for clinical and welfare practice with children. In particular, the difference between disorganized attachment and attachment disorder is examined, and a strong case is made for the value of attachment theory for supportive work with families and for the development and evaluation of evidence-based caregiving interventions.

Keywords
  • Disorganized attachment,
  • attachment disorder,
  • attachment-based interventions,
  • infancy,
  • maltreatment
Scholarly
Yes
DOI
10.1080/14616734.2017.1354040
Disciplines
Rights
Open Access article
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
Original Citation

“Disorganized attachment in infancy: a review of the phenomenon and its implications for clinicians and policy-makers.” by Granqvist, P., Sroufe, L. A., Dozier, M., Hesse, E., Steele, M., Van Ljzendoorn, M., Solomon, J., Schuengel, C., Fearon, P.,Bakermans-Kranenburg, M., Steele, H., Cassidy, J., Carlson, E., Madigan, S., Jacobvitz, D., Foster, S., Behrens, K., Rifkin-Graboi, A., Gribneau, N., Spangler, G., Ward, M. J., True, M., Spieker, S., Reijman, S., Reisz, S., Tharner, A., Nkara, F., Goldwyn, R., Sroufe, J., Pederson, D., Pederson, D., Weigand, R., Siegel, D., Dazzi, N., Bernard, K., Fonagy, P., Waters, E., Toth, S., Cicchetti, D., Zeanah, C. H., Lyons-Ruth, K.,, Main, M., & Dischinsky, R. Journal of Attachment & Human Development, 19(6), 534-558. 2017. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2017.1354040

Citation Information
Pehr Granqvist, L. Alan Sroufe, Mary Dozier, Erik Hesse, et al.. "Disorganized Attachment in Infancy: A Review of the Phenomenon and Its Implications for Clinicians and Policy-Makers" Journal of Attachment & Human Development Vol. 19 Iss. 6 (2017) p. 534 - 558
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/mary-true/7/