ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Individuals with sensory regulation disorders present with many difficulties in terms of managing emotions, behavior, and motor control. Children with such difficulties are often referred to psychiatric clinics for assessment of their behavioral and emotional problems. Few studies have investigated the role of environmental factors on sensory dysfunctions, and none have specifically studied its association with child attachment in a clinical sample. OBJECTIVE: In this cross-sectional study, we examined the association between sensory regulation and child attachment among preschoolers referred to a psychiatric clinic. METHOD: A sample of 60 preschoolers and their mothers were recruited through a child psychiatric clinic. Child attachment was assessed with the gold standard separation-reunion procedure for preschoolers. Parents completed the sensory profile, which assesses the presence of child hypersensitivity (sensitivity and avoidant scale) and hyposensitivity (sensory seeking and registration scale). RESULTS: Data showed that 57% of the children were presented with clinical symptoms of sensory regulation. In addition, 53% of the children were classified insecure behaviorally disorganized or insecure disorganized controlling. In particular, results revealed that children classified as insecure disorganized controlling were significantly more likely to show hypersensitivity avoidance and sensory-seeking behaviors. CONCLUSION: This study underscores the importance of the parent-child relationship for children with sensory regulation difficulties.
Subject(s)
Child Behavior Disorders/physiopathology , Mother-Child Relations , Object Attachment , Self-Control , Child Behavior Disorders/classification , Child, Preschool , Cross-Sectional Studies , Female , Humans , Male , Mother-Child Relations/psychology , Self-Control/psychologyABSTRACT
This 49-family study is the first to explore the father-child relationship in a clinical population of preschoolers (at a tertiary care child psychiatry clinic) and to examine its relation to child anxiety and attachment to the mother. A moderation model of the father-child activation relationship on the relation between attachment to the mother and child anxiety was tested and discussed. Analyses confirmed the expected independence between mother-child attachment and father-child activation as well as the association between mother-child attachment and anxiety. The highest levels of anxiety were found in insecure children, and more specifically, in insecure-ambivalent children and insecure disorganized-controlling children of the caregiving subtype. Hypotheses regarding the relation between anxiety and activation were only partially confirmed. Finally, the activation relationship with the father was shown to have a moderating effect on the relation between attachment to the mother and child anxiety; activation by the father may be considered either a protective or a risk factor. Results for this clinical population of young children are discussed in the light of attachment theory and activation relationship theory. The study's findings have the potential to contribute to the development of preventative, diagnostic, and intervention programs that take both parental figures into account.
