Attachment and Neuroscience

Attachment Theory
Attachment behaviour is defined as:
The seeking of protection when anxious
which is triggered by external threats or
behaviours

The person to whom a child is attached
provides a secure base, a place of safety,
warmth and comfort
Attachment Theory
A securely attached child feels confident that should
they feel anxious, their parents will respond. Such
security is brought on by interactions which are:
Sensitive
Regularly available and reliable
Warm
Responsive
Consistent
Way attachment develops
need
high
arousal
satisfy
need
relaxation
trust
security
attachment
arousal - relaxation cycle
Secure and insecure attachment
A securely attached child is likely when faced with potentially
alarming situations .... to tackle them effectively or seek help
in doing so

Children whose needs have not been adequately met see the
world as;
comfortless and unpredictable and they respond by either
shrinking from it or doing battle with it.

Bowlby (1980) Attachment and loss Vol. 3 and Bowlby (1973) Attachment and loss Vol. 2

Insecure Avoidant
Caregiver subtly or overtly reject childs attachment
needs at time of stress
Bids for comfort will be rebuffed
Child keeps his/her attention directed away from their
caregivers in an effort not to arouse anxiety and
frustration
In control because of the need for self reliance
Comfort self rather than accept it from others
Insecure Ambivalent/Anxious
Caregiver will be inadequate at meeting child
attachment needs (caregiver is passive, unresponsive
and ineffective)
Childs strategy is to amplify attachment needs and
signals in an effort to arouse a response (verbal and
behavioural: bubbly affection to rage, anger, panic and
despair. All experienced as controlling)
Unlovable and helpless selves & unpredictable and
withholding others.
Insecure Disorganised
Child experiences the carer giver as the source of alarm
and its only solution.
Child in these circumstances is unable to be guided by
their mental model of the world because it offers few
directions.
Frightened, helpless, fragile and sad
At risk of mental health problems or anti-social behaviour
In Essence
Attachment needs are activated during times
of perceived stress (discomfort,
environmental, danger, fatigue, illness)

The child must either have these attachment
needs met or find other ways to cope.
Compulsive self-reliance
Distrusts relationships, avoids being rejected or relied upon. Prone
to depression or psychosomatic symptoms.
Compulsive care giving
Actively involved in relationships but always as a care giver. Own
parents unable to provide care but might have demanded it from
child.
Care-seeking
Vigilant to signs of loss or abandonment. Constantly anxious.
Parents probably unresponsive or threatened to leave family.
Angry withdrawal
Generalised anger towards attachment figure who is seen as
unavailable.
Adolescent attachment styles
Positive brain development

The way a child is stimulated shapes the brains
neurobiological structure. Experience has a direct
impact on a childs capacity for living, learning and
relating as a social being.



Early Brain Development
We are born with most of the neurons (brain cells) we will ever own but;

At birth the brain is 25% of its adult weight - by the age of 2
this has increased to 75% and by age 3 it is 90% of adult
weight.

This growth is largely the result of the formation and hard
wiring of synaptic connections

Babies brains are both experience expectant and
experience dependent
Proliferation of synapses
The Learning Years: 5-10

Synaptic pathways that are regularly used are reinforced.
This is the basis of learning. Reinforcement leads to
permanent neurological pathways.

Neural connections needed for abstract reasoning are
developed

Motor skills are refined
Adolescent Brain Development
Brain development continues up to at least the age of 20

There is a significant remodelling of the brain in
adolescence, particularly the frontal lobes and
connections between these and the limbic system

The frequency and intensity of experiences shapes this
remodelling as the brain adapts to the environment in
which it is functioning and becomes more efficient
Emotional Functioning
There is a mismatch between emotional and cognitive
regulatory modes in adolescence
Brain structures mediating emotional experiences
change rapidly at the onset of puberty
Maturation of the frontal brain structures underpinning
cognitive control lag behind by several years
Adolescents are left with powerful emotional responses
to social stimuli that they cannot easily regulate,
contextualise, create plans about or inhibit
Impact of trauma
In the face of interpersonal trauma, all the systems of
the social brain become shaped for offensive and
defensive purposes. A child growing up surrounded
by trauma and unpredictability will only be able to
develop neural systems and functional capabilities
that reflect this disorganisation.


Source: National CAMHS Support Service, Everybodys Business

Traumatic stress
When children and young people experience persistent stress
they are likely to produce toxic amounts of cortisol which can
have a detrimental effect on

Brain function
All major body systems
Social functioning



Over production of stress hormones
These functions may be diminished or lost:

Ability to learn language and to speak
Understanding feelings or having words to describe them
Connection between how we feel and our sensory
experience
Empathy
Control of impulse
Regulation of mood
Short term memory
Enjoyment