Unresolved States Of Mind Research Articles

Unresolved states of mind, disorganized attachment relationships, and disrupted interactions of adolescent mothers and their infants.

The links between unresolved maternal attachment status, disrupted maternal interaction in play situations, and disorganized attachment relationships were examined in a study of 82 adolescent mother-infant dyads. Maternal interactive behavior was measured using the Atypical Maternal Behavior Instrument for Assessment and Classification coding system. Additional rating scales were developed to correspond to the 5 dimensions of disrupted maternal behavior outlined by E. Bronfman, E. Parsons, and K. Lyons-Ruth (1999). A robust association was observed between disrupted maternal behavior and disorganized attachment. Ratings of disrupted maternal behavior revealed that disorganized attachment relationships were strongly related to ratings of fearful/disoriented behavior. Moreover, mothers who were unresolved were more likely than not-unresolved mothers to show disrupted patterns of interaction with their infants. Regression analyses suggested that disrupted behavior statistically mediated the association between unresolved status and disorganized attachment relationships.

Childhood experiences of trauma and loss have different relations to maternal unresolved and Hostile-Helpless states of mind on the AAI

This study of 45 high-risk mothers and infants examined the current indirect effects model of intergenerational transmission of disorganized attachment, which posits that maternal childhood experiences of loss or trauma contribute to maternal states of mind on the AAI which in turn contribute to infant disorganization. The severity of experiences of both abuse and loss were examined in relation to both Unresolved states of mind and Hostile-Helpless states of mind on the AAI and to infant disorganization at both 12 and 18 months. Neither the experience of parental death in childhood nor the severity of abuse in childhood was related to Unresolved states of mind on the AAI. Instead, an Unresolved state of mind and the experience of parental death contributed independently and additively to the prediction of infant disorganization at 12 months. At 18 months, an indirect effects model was supported in relation to Hostile-Helpless but not Unresolved states of mind, in that severity of trauma had no direct relation to infant disorganization but severity of trauma was related to Hostile-Helpless states of mind which in turn predicted infant disorganization. Unresolved states of mind and experiences of parental loss did not add to prediction of disorganization at 18 months. The findings suggest that the influence of maternal trauma on infant attachment may become more prominent at 18 months as the infant makes the transition to toddlerhood. The results also suggest that a more complex etiologic model may be needed of the aspects of early experience that contribute to adult Unresolved states of mind on the AAI.

Adult Attachment Interview and Psychoanalytic Perspective: A Single Case Study

In this single case study we present a female patient diagnosed with a narcissistic personality disorder and a borderline organization. The interplay between attachment and psychoanalytic perspective will be focused. The analyst describes his impressions of the initial interview with the patient and essential steps during treatment. The patient was interviewed with the Adult Attachment Interview and classified as “insecure preoccupied” with an “unresolved state of mind” concerning loss and abuse. The analyst was asked to comment the AAI's essential characteristics of this patient. We discuss converging and diverging aspects of clinical and attachment interpretation in this single case.

Frightening maternal behaviour, unresolved loss, and disorganized infant attachment: A pilot-study

We investigated frightening (threatening, frightened, or dissociated) maternal behaviour as the proposed explanation of the association between maternal unresolved state of mind regarding loss and disorganized infant attachment (Main and Hesse, 1990). We established frightening maternal behaviour can be identified in home observations, even in a lowrisk sample (n = 12), and was predicted at the trend level by unresolved maternal loss.