Preschoolers Attachment to the Mother and its Impact on Mental Health

1705

Abstract

The research shows influence of attachment to mother on psychological health of pre-school children. 163 preschoolers aged 5 to 7 years examined. The evaluation of different areas of attachment of child to mother was held using "Mother-child attachment style measure questionnaire" (E.V. Pupyreva, 2007), the psychological health of children was measured by "Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire"(E.R. Slobodskaya et al., 2005). It has been found that by the end of pre-school age the perception of mother in the capacity of support source is becoming noticeable for boys. Shown that in children who demonstrate insecure attachment, registered emotional symptoms and internal problems, meanwhile children with secure attachment type are following the prosociality in behavior. Concluded that the act of reliable attachment (acceptance of a child by mother, emotional sensibility of mother) is the important predictor of mental health. Insufficient support of children by mother and small need of mother presence increase possibility of the emotional disturbance and the behavioral problems.

General Information

Keywords: attachment, type of attachment, emotional disorders, behavioral difficulties, predictors, gender, preschool childhood

Journal rubric: Empirical Research

Article type: scientific article

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17759/cpse.2020090109

Funding. this work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (project № 18-013-01101 А “Attachment in childhood and relationship with mental health problems”)

For citation: Kuftyak E.V., Zadorova J.A. Preschoolers Attachment to the Mother and its Impact on Mental Health [Elektronnyi resurs]. Klinicheskaia i spetsial'naia psikhologiia = Clinical Psychology and Special Education, 2020. Vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 169–185. DOI: 10.17759/cpse.2020090109. (In Russ., аbstr. in Engl.)

References

  1. Avdeeva N.N., Kochetova Yu.A. Vliyanie stilya detsko-roditel'skikh otnoshenii na vozniknovenie strakhov u detei [Influence of child-parent relationship style on fears occur; rence in children]. Psikhologicheskaya nauka i obrazovanie [Psychological Science and Education], 2008, vol. 13, no. 4, pp. 35–47. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  2. Anastazi A., Urbina S. Psikhologicheskoe testirovanie [Psychological testing]. Saint-Petersburg: Piter, 2007. 688 p. (In Russ.)
  3. Biosotsial'naya priroda materinstva i rannego detstva [Biosocial nature of motherhood and childhood] / A.S. Batuev (ed.). Saint-Petersburg: publ. of SPbU, 2007. 374 p. (In Russ.)
  4. Boulbi Dzh. Privyazannost' [Attachment]. Moscow: Gardariki, 2003. 480 p. (In Russ.)
  5. Burlachuk L.F. Psikhodiagnostika [Psychodiagnostics]. Saint-Petersburg: Piter, 2008. 384 p. (In Russ.).
  6. Burmenskaya G.V. Privyazannost' rebenka k materi kak osnovanie tipologii razvitiya [Child's attachment to mother as the basis of developmental typology]. Vestnik moskovskogo universiteta [Moscow University Psychology Bulletin], 2009, no. 4, pp. 17–32. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  7. Gil'yasheva I.N., Ignat'eva N.D. Metodika issledovaniya mezhlichnostnykh otnoshenii rebenka [Methods of research of interpersonal relationships of child]. Moscow: Folium Publ., 1994. 64 p. (In Russ.)
  8. Zadorova Yu.A. Vliyanie privyazannosti blizkikh vzroslykh na privyazannost' rebenka k materi. Magisterskaya dissertatsiya [Influence of attachment of close adults on the child's attachment to the mother. Master's thesis]. Kostroma, 2016. 124 p. (In Russ.)
  9. Zadorova Yu.A. Issledovanie privyazannosti materi i rebenka doshkol'nogo vozrasta [Research of attachment of mother and child of preschool age]. Vestnik KGU. Seriya: Pedagogika. Psikhologiya. Sotsiokinetika [Vestnik of Kostroma State University Series: Pedagogy. Psychology. Sociokinetics], 2017, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 65–69. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  10. Kozlova E.A., Slobodskaya E.R., Akhmetova O.A. Individual'nye osobennosti i sotsial'no-ekonomicheskie kharakteristiki sem'i kak faktory psikhicheskogo zdorov'ya detei [Individual characteristics and socio-economic characteristics of the family as factors of children's mental health]. Kul'turno-istoricheskaya psikhologiya [Cultural-Historical Psychology], 2014, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 46–53. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  11. Kochetova Yu.A. Strakhi sovremennykh doshkol'nikov i ikh svyaz' s osobennostyami detsko-roditel'skikh otnoshenii [Fears of modern pre-schoolers and their connection with peculiarities of child-parent relations]. Psikhologicheskaya nauka i obrazovanie [Psychological Science and Education], 2012, vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 77–87. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  12. Kunitsyna V.N., Kazantseva T.V. Vosproizvedenie tipov privyazannosti v otnosheniyakh s blizkimi lyud'mi [Reproduction of types of affection in relationships with loved ones]. Vestnik SPbU. Seriya 12 (Sotsiologiya i Psikhologiya) [Vestnik of Saint Petersburg University. (Sociology and Psychology)], 2009, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 3–8. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  13. Kuftyak E.V. Privyazannost' rebenka k materi i otnosheniya privyazannosti blizkikh vzroslykh [The child's attachment to the mother and attachment relations of close adults]. Sibirskii vestnik psikhiatrii i narkologii [Siberian Gerald of Psychiatry and Addiction Psychiatry], 2015, vol. 86, no. 1, pp. 78–83. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  14. Kuftyak E.V. Psikhologicheskoe zdorov'e i zashchitnye mekhanizmy (psikhologicheskie zashchity i sovladanie) v detskom vozraste [Psychological health and protective mechanisms (psychological defenses and coping behavior) in childhood]. Psikhologicheskie issledovaniya [Psychological Research], 2016, vol. 9, no. 49, p. 4. Available at: http://psystudy.ru/index.php/num/2016v9n49/1335-kuftyak49.html (Accessed 16.10.2019). (In Russ., Abstr. in Engl.)
  15. Kuftyak E.V. Semeino-pokolencheskoe issledovanie: teoriya i praktika [Family Generation Research: Theory and Practice]. Vestnik Kostromskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: Pedagogika. Psikhologiya. Sotsiokinetika [Vestnik of Kostroma State University. Series: Pedagogy. Psychology. Sotsiokinetika], 2014, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 64–68. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  16. Mel'nikova M.L. Risunok «Mat' i ditya» v diagnostike privyazannosti [The picture "Mother and child" in the diagnosis of attachment]. Izhevsk: ERGO, 2007. 213 p. (In Russ.)
  17. Nikol'skaya I.M. Metod seriinykh risunkov i rasskazov v psikhologicheskoi diagnostike i konsul'tirovanii detei i podrostkov [Method of serial drawings and stories in psychological diagnostics and counseling of children and adolescents]. Saint-Petersburg: Rech', 2016. 56 p. (In Russ.)
  18. Pupyreva E.V. Emotsional'naya privyazannost' k materi kak faktor stanovleniya avtonomii lichnosti v mladshem shkol'nom vozraste. Diss. kand. psikhol. nauk. [Emotional attachment to the mother as a factor in the formation of personality autonomy in primary school age. PhD. (Psychology) Diss.]. Moscow, 2007. 225 p.  (In Russ.)
  19. Samakova I.A. Risunok kak sredstvo izucheniya materinsko-detskikh otnoshenii. Kvalifikatsionnaya rabota [Drawing as means of studying mother-child relationships. Graduation work]. Kostroma, 2008. 142 p. (In Russ.)
  20. Sergienko E.A. Psikhologicheskoe zdorov'e: sub"ektivnye factory [Psychological Health: Subjective Factors]. Vestnik RGGU. Seriya: Psikhologiya. Pedagogika. Obrazovanie [Bulletin of the Russian State Humanitarian University. Series: Psychology. Pedagogy. Education], 2017, no. 4., pp. 98–117. (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  21. Simonenko I.A. Privyazannost' i ee vliyanie na zdorov'e i razvitie rebenka. Psikhoterapiya privyazannosti v detskom vozraste [Attachment and its impact on the child's health and development. Attachment psychotherapy in childhood]. Kursk: publ. of KGMU, 2014. 242 p. (In Russ.)
  22. Slobodskaya E.R., Kozlova E.A., Bairova N.B., et al. Proizvol'naya regulyatsiya i psikhologicheskoe blagopoluchie detei [Arbitrary regulation and psychological well-being of children]. Psikhologicheskii zhurnal [Psychological Journal], 2019, vol. 40, no. 4, pp. 60–71. doi: 10.31857/S020595920005450-1 (In Russ.; abstr. in Engl.)
  23. Ainsworth M.D., Blehar M.C., Waters E., et al. Patterns of attachment: A psychological study of the strange situation. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1978. 391 p.
  24. Del Giudice M. Sex Differences in Attachment Styles. Current Opinion in Psychology, 2019, vol. 25, pp. 1–5. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2018.02.004
  25. Glazer H.R. Expressions of children’s grief: A qualitative study. International Journal of Play Therapy, 1998, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 51–65.
  26. Goodman R., Slobodskaya H., Knyazev G. Russian child mental health a cross-sectional study of prevalence and risk factors. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2005, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 28–33. doi: 10.1007/s00787-005-0420-8
  27. Kuftyak E. Relation of child’s attachment with proximity relationships in family. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2015, vol. 165, pp. 131–135. doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.12.614
  28. Lowenfeld V., Brittain W.L. Creative and mental growth. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1987. 460 p.
  29. Tremblay R.E. Developmental origins of disruptive behaviour problems: The original sin hypothesis, epigenetics and their consequences for prevention. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 2010, vol. 51, no. 4, pp. 341–367. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2010.02211.x

Information About the Authors

Elena V. Kuftyak, Doctor of Psychology, Professor of the General Psychology Department, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, Нead of the Department of Age and Family Counseling, Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis, Moscow, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3723-0507, e-mail: elena.kuftyak@inbox.ru

Julia A. Zadorova, PhD Student, Chair of General and Social Psychology, Kostroma State University, Kostroma, Russia, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6814-3583, e-mail: julia.zadorova@yandex.ru

Metrics

Views

Total: 3660
Previous month: 41
Current month: 34

Downloads

Total: 1705
Previous month: 37
Current month: 23