Measuring attachment security in middle childhood: Connections to behavior, adjustment, school adaptation, and social skills

Adequate measures of attachment security in middle childhood are lacking. This study examined the extent to which a self-report measure, the Security Scale, predicted personal and social adjustment, behavior, and school functioning in 33 8- to 10-year-olds. Children completed the Security Scale and a measure of personal adjustment, social skills, and school and behavior problems. Parents and teachers assessed children's social skills and behavior; teachers also evaluated academic competence and school adaptation. Children who perceived their parent to be available reported greater personal adjustment. In contrast, child-reported dependency on parents was associated with parent and teacher reports of behavior problems and teacher reports of school problems and poor social skills. Dependency upon and availability of a caregiver, important components of attachment in early childhood, may be differentially related to adaptation in middle childhood.