Attachment-Related Differences In Self-Regulation Across Childhood

Mary DozierInfant attachment organization and security has been associated with externalizing behaviors and poor self-regulatory ability in early childhood (Erickson, Sroufe, & Egeland, 1985; Fearon, Bakermans-Kranenburg, van Ijzendoorn, Lapsley, & Roisman 2010). Infant attachment security and organization has also been associated with behavioral difficulties in middle childhood (Fearon et al., 2010). There has also been support for the continuity of disruptive behaviors and behavioral regulation from early to middle childhood (Bennett et al., 1999; Kjeldsen et al., 2016; Moreland & Dumas, 2008). These associations are also significant for children who have experienced early adversity (Erickson et al., 1985; Shaw & Vondra, 1995; Shaw, Owens, Vondra, Keenan, & Winslow, 1996; Sroufe, 1983). The current study examined whether infant attachment security and organization was associated with measures of self-regulation in both early and middle childhood. The final analyses revealed if the measure of self-regulation in early childhood predicted the use of specific regulatory behaviors in middle childhood. Analyses revealed a significant correlation between infant attachment security and the use of active self-regulation in middle childhood (t = -2.09, p < .05), and significant associations between the measure of early childhood self-regulation and the use of active self-regulation (r = -.36, p < .05), active distraction (r = .36, p < .05), and limit testing behaviors in middle childhood (r = .27, p < .05; r = .30, p < .05).Psycholog