Abstract
The aim of this study was to analyze the nature of affective relationships between parents and children and to explore representational models in a sample of 111 children aged between 3 and 6, assessed using a projective measure. The results obtained confirm that, globally, security in the representation of attachment is higher with mothers. The figure of the father in the established hierarchy is secondary. The results also reveal a statistically significant relationship between children’s age and the attachment established with their fathers and mothers. The older the child, the greater the security manifested in their relations, and the younger the child, the greater the insecurity.
Highlights
The significance of attachment theory (Ainsworth, 1973; Bowlby, 1969, 1980), considered one of the most important theoretical and empirical constructions in the field of socioemotional development, is based on the formulation of internal working models of oneself and one’s relationships, in close connection with behaviors and feelings.Models reflect the construction of a mental representation of the world, based on the generalization of the interactions children experience with their attachment figures during their early relations with the adults that satisfy their needs, and include the internalization of specific attributes and expectations of both their own behavior and the behavior their attachment figures
As a result of new cognitive-representative, communicative, social and psychomotor skills, and children enter a new phase in the development of attachment, known as “goal-corrected partnership”
Due to its methodological innovation and the fact that it has been used very little and is costly to apply and correct, as well as because it is the instrument used to measure representational models, we have provided a description of the task below
Summary
Models reflect the construction of a mental representation of the world, based on the generalization of the interactions children experience with their attachment figures during their early relations with the adults that satisfy their needs, and include the internalization of specific attributes and expectations of both their own behavior (feeling loved, accepted and protected) and the behavior their attachment figures. They constitute a pattern for the relationships that individuals will establish throughout the rest of their lives. The “moral self” emerges, reflected in children’s ability to defer behavior, abide by rules and correct their behavior in the absence of the attachment figure
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
