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Coun 502 Unit 2 Research Paper

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Coun 502 Unit 2 Research Paper
The Relationship Between Parental Attachments and Mental Disorders
COUN 502: Human Growth and Development
September 28, 2013
Abstract
Emotional development is important for a child as it plays essential roles in the functioning and wiring of the brain within the first few years of life. The right emotional attachments formed by a parent or caregiver can influence how a child interacts with others as well as how the child copes with stress and adversity. The need for secure attachment in a child’s life serves as a type of mental molding which helps with positive growth and expectations in the confident adult life. Secure parental relationships at an early age lay the blueprint for an adult who is able to create and maintain …show more content…
This lack of security can open a range of possibilities for mental disorders. Certain types of attachment disorders, if not properly treated, may cause low self-esteem, inability to maintain healthy relationships, violence, and a negative outlook towards others in life.
Keywords: attachments, emotion, relationship, secure, disorders
The Relationship between Parental Attachments and Mental Disorders
While there are many reasons for mental disabilities, the type attachment between caregiver and child have a profound impact on the ability for a child to develop positive relationships, learn coping skills, or control their emotions. The Online Psychology Dictionary (n.d.) defines attachment as “the tendency of human infants and animals to become emotionally close to certain individuals and to be calm and soothed while in their presence. For …show more content…
The caregiver’s responses are at times appropriate and at times neglectful (Lumiere, 2012). Ambivalent attachment can also occur when the caregiver responds only to the physical needs such as feeding and changing, but ignores the infant’s need for human interaction and connection. The child is therefore unable to experience the caregiver as a secure base (Lumiere, 2012). A preoccupation with the caregiver’s availability is formed, seeking contact but resisting angrily when it is achieved. In this relationship the child always feels anxious because the caregiver’s availability is never consistent. Therefore this attachment style is at times also referred to as resistant, anxious or preoccupied (Lumiere,
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