Attachment Across the Life Cycle

Book excerpt: It has long been suspected that many of the common psychiatric and social problems of adult life have their roots in the early relationship between the child and its mother. To explain this simple observation and to examine the part which these patterns of attachment play in the causation of psychiatric and social problems, a body of knowledge has sprung up which owes much to the pioneering work of the late John Bowlby. This book draws together recent theoretical contributions, research findings and clinical data from psychiatrists, psychologists, sociologists and ethnologists from Britain, America and Europe. Their work has confirmed the importance of the earlier research and extended it to cover attachment throughout the life cycle.