The attachment of prematurely born children at school age: A pilot study

Clin Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2015 Jul;20(3):381-94. doi: 10.1177/1359104515589640.

Abstract

This prospective longitudinal study compared the psychological development and patterns of attachment of 20 prematurely born children and 20 full-term children at 7 years of age. The School-age Assessment of Attachment (SAA) was used, and hypotheses and interpretation of the findings were drawn from the Dynamic-Maturational Model of Attachment and Adaptation (DMM). Significant differences between prematurely born and full-term children were found: 10% versus 0% at "high" risk, 55% versus 25% at "moderate" risk, and 35% versus 75% at "low" risk. There were no differences in the percentage of psychological trauma between samples, but there was a difference in the types of experiences leading to trauma. For prematurely born children, it was most often illness, whereas for full-term children, it was family problems. We discuss the implications for clinicians.

Keywords: Attachment; perinatal problem; prematurely born children; psychological risk; school age.

MeSH terms

  • Case-Control Studies
  • Child
  • Child Development*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Infant, Newborn
  • Infant, Premature / psychology
  • Longitudinal Studies
  • Male
  • Object Attachment*
  • Pilot Projects
  • Premature Birth / psychology*
  • Prospective Studies
  • Psychological Trauma
  • Risk Assessment
  • Stress, Psychological / psychology
  • Term Birth / psychology