Fourth attachment type

Fourth attachment type

1. Type D: Insecure Disorganised: disoriented/contradictory behaviours, behaviours that didn’t fit into the three other categories

2. More common in certain groups of infants Example: abused/maltreated infants; depressed mothers; parental additions, etc.

3. How might Type D attachment come about?

   • o Fear of caregivers OR witnessing caregivers showing fearful or frightened behaviours o Parents’ unresolved mental state (e.g. abuse by parents, sudden death of child)
   • High levels of maternal expressed emotion, overly critical or overly involved with their children

4. Children with this attachment type tend to have more problems later in childhood, with aggression or anxiety or depression etc.