Attachment in the early life course: Meta-analytic evidence for its role in socioemotional development
Open accessAbstract
Abstract After decades of research on early attachment relationships, questions remain concerning whether the evidence supports claims made by attachment theory, in particular, that variation in early attachment predicts children's developmental adaptation or maladaptation, and that characteristics of children's temperament does not determine attachment. To evaluate these claims, we conducted meta-analyses on early attachment and children's social competence with peers, externalizing problems, internalizing symptoms, and temperament. In this article, we summarize our findings, which support attachment theory—though we note caveats. We also call for new measurement models, a focus on mediating and moderating mechanisms, and multisite replications.
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From childhood to adolescence, individuals develop peer attachment.
“From childhood to adolescence, individuals develop peer attachment [32].”
From The Relationship between Empathy and Attachment in Children and Adolescents: Three-Level Meta-Analyses. (2022) · cites this paper as [32]
The Abstract and 'Sequelae and Origins of Early Attachment Security' discuss how early attachment relates to children's peer competence through early adolescence. The 'Looking Ahead and Conclusion' section notes developmental changes in peer relationships, but none of these passages says that individuals develop attachment to peers from childhood to adolescence. Searches for peer attachment and its development found no such passage in our copy; page numbers were not provided. (LLM, conf=0.75)
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- Authors
- Groh, A. M., Fearon, R. M. P., van IJzendoorn, M. H., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., & Roisman, G. I.
- Affiliations
- University of Missouri (US)
- University College London
- Leiden University
- University of Minnesota (US)
- Corresponding author
- Groh, Ashley M
- Venue
- Child Development Perspectives
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2017-02-08
- Volume
- 11
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 70-76
- ISSN
- 1750-8592 (ISSN-L)
- 1750-8606
- OpenAlex
- W2553646641
- Cited by
- 512
- References
- 43
- Citations by year
- 2026: 47 · 2025: 71 · 2024: 66 · 2023: 51 · 2022: 58 · 2021: 57 · 2020: 88 · 2019: 30 · 2018: 29 · 2017: 13
- FWCI
- 37.68
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Child Development Perspectives (publishedVersion)
- Leiden Repository (Leiden University) (submittedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Child and Animal Learning Development
- Keywords
- attachment, attachment theory, early attachment, social-emotional development, social competence, peer relationships, externalizing problems, internalizing problems, child temperament, developmental adaptation
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