Study On The Influence Factors Of Infant-mother Attachment And The Outcomes Of Cognition And Behavior In Toddler Age

Concerning children’s early emotional development, John Bowlby first used the term "attachment" to describe the affective bond that develops between an infant and a primary caregiver, usually his/her mother. According to Bowlby’s theory, infant-mother attachment is established over the first two years of life and beyond. This attachment forms the most important basis for the child’s psychological growth and development. In1978, Mary Ainsworth developed the "Strange Situation procedure" a method of assessing infant attachment. Ainsworth described three patterns of attachment:secure (B), insecure-avoidant (A), and insecure-resistant (C). Mary main et al. later described a fourth category, insecure-disorganized (D). Thereafter, many subsequent cross-national studies on infant attachment were conducted. The findings consistently showed that there are cultural differences in patterns of infant attachment.In contrast to the considerable volume of international research, much less attention has been paid to infant attachment development in China. The pioneering study of attachment in China was reported in1996by Hu Ping and Meng Zhao-lan of Peking University using a sample of31mother-infant dyads from intact, middle-class families. Since then, theoretical studies on child attachment in China have been promoted, but experimental studies are still rarely reported. Whereas, the fact that China is a multi-national country well known for its particular and colorful cultural characteristics and especially for its "one child per family" policy, along with growing international exchange and the introduction of relevant measuring methods from abroad, facilitates researchers’efforts to study Chinese children’s emotional development and initiate experimental studies on attachment.The present study aimed to examine patterns of infant-mother attachment in Shanghai and to explore influence factors with a series of testing procedures. Furthermore, the present study aimed to test the stability of attachment and the outcomes of cognition and behavior development from infancy to toddler age by following up the infants.1. Patterns and distribution of infant-mother attachment in Shanghai The subjects included160healthy infant-mother dyads of Shanghai. Infant’-mother attachment was assessed with the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP). The results showed:(1) Of the160infants,68.2%were rated as securely attached (B) and31.8%as insecurely attached. Of those infants rated as insecurely attached,7.5%were characterised as avoidant (A),21.8%as resistant (C) and2.5%as disorganized (D).(2) There were no significant sex differences in classification of infant-mother attachment (p<0.05).2. The influence factors of infant-mother attachmentThe160infant-mother dyads were examined infant temperament with Carey’s toddler temperament questionnaire, maternal sensitivity with Pederson’s maternal behavior Q-sort manual, maternal personality with Eysenck’s personality questionnaire-Chinese revision, and mother’s marital satisfaction with Olson marital quality questionnaire, respectively. Other factors were investigated by using the self-formulated family environment questionnaire related to demographic information, family income, family structure, parent’s education, mother’s employment, father’s participation, main caregivers and infant’s sleeping arrangement, etc. The results showed:(1) Other than approachability, there were no significant differences in the other dimensions between the two groups. Compared with avoidant infants, resistant infants showed higher-level intensity of reaction (p<0.05).(2) The mean sensitivity correlation score was0.71±0.93for the mothers of securely attached infants, while it was0.48±1.05for the mothers of insecurely attached infants. This difference was statistically significant, t=13.19, p<0.01.(3) There were no significant differences for any of the four personality factors (E, N, P and L) between the mothers of securely attached infants and the mothers of insecurely attached infants (p>0.05).(4) Compared to mothers of insecurely attached infants, mothers of securely attached infants were more likely to be satisfied with their marriage (p<0.05).(5) More of the infants characterised as insecurely attached with their mothers were reported to have more caregivers in their daily lives than the infants characterized as securely attached (p<0.05). Besides, more infants insecurely attached were reported as sleeping with other caregivers at night (p<0.05).There were no significant differences between them for mother’s and father’s age at the time of their infant’s birth or the mother’s and father’s education level. There were no significant differences in family income or maternal employment status or father’s involvement in caring between the groups, either.3. Intergeneration transmission of attachment and the stability of attachment from infancy to toddler age118infant-mother dyads were followed up in toddler age around3years. Each mother’s attachment to her own mother was assessed with Adult Attachment Interview Questionnaire (AAIQ), while each toddler’s attachment was assessed with Attachment Behavior Q-set (ASQ). The results showed as followed:(1)63.6%of mothers" attachment patterns were consistent with their infants’ attachment patterns. Especially, a secure mother highly predicted a secure infant.(2) Of the118toddlers,64.4%were rated as securely attached and35.6%as insecurely attached. The consistency of attachment from infancy to toddler age was very high, which approached to88.1%.4. A follow-up study on the outcomes of toddler’s cognition and behavior developmentThe118toddlers were assessed for their cognition development with Bayley Scales of Infant Development-Ⅱ, as well as their behavior problems with Achenbach’s Child Behavior Checklist. The results were as followed:(1) In toddler age, the mean MDI (mental development index) was102.9±12.6for the securely attached infants, while it was97.5±14.8for the insecurely attached infants. This difference was statistically significant, t=3.322, p<0.05.(2) In toddler age,9.0%of the securely attached infants were detected to have behavior problems, while22.5%of the insecurely attached infants were detected to have behavior problems. This difference was statistically significant,χ2=4.127, p<0.05.ConclusionsThere exist certain cultural characteristics in infant-mother attachment patterns in Shanghai. The influence factors are related with infant’s temperament characteristics, maternal sensitivity, marital satisfaction as well as the high involvement of non-mother caregivers. Furthermore, maternal own attachment pattern in childhood is another important influence factor.The security of attachment keeps highly consistent and stable from infancy to toddler age. The security of infant attachment predicts the security of toddler attachment very well. It’s worth noting that secure infant attachment is related to better cognition development and less behavior problems in toddler age.