Exploration of the links among fathers' unresolved states of mind with respect to attachment, atypical paternal behavior, and disorganized infant-father attachment.

Abstract

Atypical maternal behavior has consistently been identified as a precursor of disorganized infant-mother attachment, but to date, no research has examined the role of atypical paternal behavior in the development of disorganized infant-father attachment. This study aims to enhance our understanding and conceptualization of infant-father attachment by examining the role of fathers' unresolved states of mind and the display of atypical paternal behavior in the development of disorganized infant-father attachment. Thirty-one middle-class couples participated in this study. Maternal and paternal Adult Attachment Interviews (C. George, N. Kaplan, & M. Main, 1996) were completed prenatally and at infant age 6 months, respectively. Infant-mother and infant-father dyads participated in the Strange Situation paradigm (M. Ainsworth, M. Blehar, E. Waters, & S. Wall, 1978) when the infants were 12 and 18 months of age, respectively. The Atypical Maternal Behavior Instrument for Assessment and Classification (E. Bronfman, E. Parsons, & K. Lyons-Ruth, 1999) was used to assess maternal and paternal behavior during the Strange Situation. Maternal states of mind regarding attachment predicted infant-mother attachment relationships, and paternal states of mind predicted infant-father attachment relationships. Atypical maternal behavior was associated with infant-mother disorganized attachment; however, atypical paternal behavior did not predict infant-father disorganized attachment. Thus, it is possible that other factors, yet to be uncovered, might contribute to the development of infant-father disorganized attachment.