A support-based measure of adult attachment: Links between the Attachment Style Interview and an observational measure of parenting in a sample of at-risk mothers

Abstract

The Attachment Style Interview (ASI) is increasingly being used to assess parenting suitability in adoption and fostering settings. More research is needed, however, to establish how the ASI relates to parenting behaviour. This study addressed this need by examining the relations between the ASI and an observational measure of parenting behaviour in 66 women with children between the ages of one and six years in the US. The Atypical Maternal Behavior Instrument for Assessment and Classification (AMBIANCE) provided an overall assessment of five disrupted parenting behavioural dimensions: (1) intrusive/negative; (2) role confused; (3) fearful/disoriented; (4) withdrawing; and (5) affective communication errors. A secure adult attachment style was associated with optimal parenting. Two insecure attachment styles, the insecure angry–dismissive and insecure enmeshed styles, were linked to disrupted parenting behaviours. Mothers with disrupted parenting struggled to make and maintain supportive relationships with close others. In addition, they were highly mistrustful of others and evidenced psychological constraints about closeness and attitudes of anger, and extreme self-reliance or contradictory attitudes about help and self-reliance. The findings were upheld in multivariate analyses which included maternal depression and other significant demographic variables. The study provides strong support for the utility of ASI as one useful assessment tool for fostering and adoption settings.