Mothers’ experiences with their own caregivers and child’s behaviors attachment 1

Abstract

Early experiences of mothers with their own caregivers tend to influence later relationships, particularly with future children. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the mothers’ experiences with their own caregivers and the relation with the child’s current attachment behaviors. Participants were 48 mothers and their children (M = 28.1m; SD = 4.3). The mothers’ experience with their own caregivers was investigated through their perceptions of the care received from their caregivers (Parental Bonding Instrument), and by the representations of attachment (Attachment Script Assessment). The attachment behaviors of the child were investigated by Attachment Q-Sort. Analyzes revealed a reasonable consistency between the mothers’ perceptions about received care, their representations of attachment, and the attachment behaviors of their children. The results support the literature on the relation between mother’ experiences with their own caregivers and the attachment behaviors of the child and bring contributions when presenting evidences in a Brazilian sample.