ABSTRACT

Since its inception more than 50 years ago, attachment theory has become one of the most influential viewpoints in the behavioral sciences. What have we learned during this period about its fundamental questions? In this paper, we summarize the conclusions of an inquiry into this question involving more than 75 researchers. Each responded to one of nine “fundamental questions” in attachment theory. The questions concerned what constitutes an attachment relationship, how to measure the security of attachment, the nature and functioning of internal working models, stability and change in attachment security, the legacy of early attachment relationships, attachment and culture, responses to separation and loss, how attachment-based interventions work, and how attachment theory informs systems and services for children and families. Their responses revealed important areas of theoretical consensus but also surprising diversity on key questions, and significant areas of remaining inquiry. We discuss central challenges for the future.

摘要

自50多年前诞生以来，依恋理论已成为行为科学中最具影响力的观点之一。在此期间，我们从基本问题中学到了什么？在本文中，我们总结了一项涉及超过 75 名研究人员对该问题的调查的结论。每个人都回答了依恋理论中的九个“基本问题”之一。问题涉及什么构成依恋关系，如何衡量依恋的安全性，内部工作模式的性质和功能，依恋安全的稳定性和变化，早期依恋关系的遗产，依恋和文化，对分离和失去的反应，基于依恋的干预如何发挥作用，以及依恋理论如何为儿童和家庭的系统和服务提供信息。他们的回答揭示了重要的理论共识领域，但也揭示了关键问题的惊人多样性，以及剩余研究的重要领域。我们讨论未来的核心挑战。