Internal structure and reliability of the Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (AISI) for children age 6 to 12

Maltreatment in Daycare Settings: A Review of Empirical Studies in the Field

Daycare maltreatment refers to abusive and/or neglectful acts perpetrated by teachers, directors, non-professionals or volunteers, family members of staff, and peers in a daycare setting. Despite growing evidence of its occurrence, the prevalence and consequences of daycare maltreatment for the child, the parent(s), and their dyad are largely unknown. This qualitative systematic literature review was conducted to synthesize the existing literature referring to daycare maltreatment, using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. In order to be included in the analysis, the manuscripts needed to report empirical findings regarding maltreatment in daycare settings, be written in English, be published in a peer-reviewed journal or a dissertation, and be accessible by our research team. In all, 25 manuscripts met the above criteria and were included in the review. Our results indicate that reports of daycare maltreatment are characterized by early age of abused children, inferring mainly to sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. The majority of these manuscripts reported caregivers' and teachers' abuse, while peer victimization was reported much less. In addition, the findings demonstrated a higher representation of female perpetrators compared to abuse in other scenarios. Although some indications of long-term implications are reported in the manuscripts, a well-validated measure for assessment of daycare maltreatment seems to be lacking. These findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the complex experience and ramifications of daycare maltreatment, providing insight into its multi-faceted implications.

In-person versus online delivery of a behavioral sleep intervention (Sleeping Sound©) for children with ADHD: protocol for a parallel-group, non-inferiority, randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often experience sleep difficulties such as difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep. Problem sleep may impact children's daily functioning and behaviors and exacerbate ADHD symptoms. Most effective behavioral interventions to improve sleep are conducted in person, limiting accessibility to treatment for individuals in remote or rural communities or those who are unable to attend a clinic. This trial aims to assess the efficacy of delivering an established behavioral intervention online, Sleeping Sound with ADHD©, compared to a face-to-face delivery mode.

METHODS

This parallel group, non-inferiority, randomized controlled trial (RCT) will include at least 68 children, aged 5-12 years old with ADHD. Families of children will be recruited from private developmental and psychological clinics and social media, within the state of Western Australia (WA). Once written informed consent and baseline questionnaires are completed, families are randomized to receive the behavioral intervention either in-person or online via Telehealth services. The intervention targets the assessment and management of reported sleep problems, through two individual consultations and a follow-up phone call with a trained clinician. The sleep outcomes assessed consist of a parent-reported sleep questionnaire and actigraphy.

DISCUSSION

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first RCT to investigate sleep treatment modality for children with ADHD. If effective, clinicians can provide an evidence-based sleep intervention in an accessible manner.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ANZCTR, ACTRN12621001681842 . Registered 9 December 2021-Retrospectively registered.

Insecure attachment and internalizing behavior problems in growth discordant identical twins

BACKGROUND

Psychosocial development in monochorionic (MC) twins born after selective fetal growth restriction (sFGR) has been unreported to date, despite its importance for daily functioning and future relationships.

AIMS

To investigate psychosocial development, attachment and school functioning in MC twins with sFGR and compare outcomes with the general population and between smaller and larger twins.

STUDY DESIGN

Observational cohort study.

SUBJECTS

MC twins with sFGR (defined as a birth weight discordance ≥20 %) born between 2002 and 2017 and aged 3-17 years.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Multiple parent report questionnaires: the Child Behavior Checklist (social-emotional development and behavior), the (Early) Childhood Behavior Questionnaire Very Short Form (temperament), the Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (attachment) and a school functioning questionnaire.

RESULTS

Median age for the 48 twin pairs was 11 (interquartile range (IQR) 8-13) years. Attachment insecurity for both twins was higher than in the general population for ambivalence/resistance (34 % (21/62) vs. 16 %, p = 0.024) and total attachment insecurity (35 % (22/62) vs. 16 %, p = 0.016). Smaller twins had more internalizing behavioral problems, i.e. negative emotions and behaviors turned inwards (22 % (10/46) vs. 11 % (5/46), p = 0.021) and a higher negative affect, i.e. more likely to experience negative emotions (3.2 (2.9-3.7) vs. 2.9 (2.2-3.2), p = 0.009) than larger twins, as well as a lower secondary school level (p = 0.031).

CONCLUSION

MC twins with sFGR have more ambivalent/resistant attachment insecurity following the complicated pregnancy course. Smaller twins have a tendency towards negative emotions and internalizing behaviors compared to larger twins, indicating an increased sensitivity for depression and anxiety.

Pandémie de COVID-19: attachement, anxiété, régulation émotionnelle et stratégies de coping chez les enfants d’âge scolaire

Introduction

Un impact de la pandémie de COVID-19 sur les émotions et comportements des enfants a été retrouvé dans plusieurs études. Cependant, cet impact n’a pas été retrouvé dans toutes les études. L’attachement pourrait être lié à des réactions et des niveaux d’anxiété différents.

Objectif

L’objectif principal de cette étude était d’analyser les liens entre l’attachement insécure des enfants et les variables liées à l’anxiété et à la gestion émotionnelle et comportementale des enfants pendant la pandémie.

Méthode

Les participants de l’étude (n = 83 parents et leur enfant âgé de 6 à 12 ans) ont complété de façon anonyme des questionnaires en ligne évaluant l’insécurité d’attachement, l’anxiété-état, les stratégies de coping et la régulation émotionnelle. Ils ont également répondu à des questions sociodémographiques et liées à leur contexte de vie et vécu de la pandémie.

Résultats

L’anxiété-état est liée de façon significative à la dysrégulation émotionnelle des enfants mais pas à la stratégie de coping tourné vers l’émotion. Des liens significatifs ont été observés entre l’insécurité d’attachement, d’une part, et l’anxiété-état des enfants, la stratégie de coping tourné vers l’émotion et la dysrégulation émotionnelle des enfants, d’autre part. La dysrégulation émotionnelle médiatiserait le lien entre attachement désorganisé et anxiété-état.

Conclusion

Les liens entre l’insécurité d’attachement et l’anxiété-état des enfants, d’une part, et la stratégie de coping tourné vers l’émotion, d’autre part, montrent l’importance de prendre en compte les facteurs individuels et interactionnels dans les manifestations socio-émotionnelles des enfants pendant la pandémie de COVID-19.

Development of the Dog Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (D-AISI): A Pilot Study on a Sample of Female Owners

Simple Summary

The Strange Situation Procedure is a laboratory test originally designed to assess the quality of a child’s attachment bond to their mother and is widely used in dogs to assess their attachment bond towards the owner. However, the SSP is time consuming and limits the amount and variety of obtainable data. In order to overcome these limitations, we adapted a three-dimensional parent-report scale, named the Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (AISI) 6–12, originally developed to assess 6- to 12-year-old children’s attachment insecurity, to dog–owner dyads, and we assessed scale consistency and validity. A first statistical analysis performed on the responses provided by 524 female owners to the online questionnaire revealed five scale dimensions named “physical contact”, “control”, separation anxiety”, “owner as emotional support”, and “owner as a source of positive emotion”. However, a further forced extraction of three components resulted in subscales that mirrored the ones reported for the original AISI in terms of item composition (i.e., ambivalent, avoidant, and disorganized). The three subscales also had satisfactory to good measures of internal reliability. The final scale was named the Dog Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (D-AISI). Although promising, it needs to be refined and tested for more validity measures.

Abstract

To date, the Strange Situation Procedure is the only tool available to investigate the quality of the dog’s attachment bond towards the owner. This study aimed to adapt a parent-report scale, named the Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (AISI) 6–12, originally designed to assess 6- to 12-year-old children’s attachment insecurity, to dog–owner dyads and assess measures of consistency and validity. The online questionnaire was completed by 524 female dog owners. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed five components named, respectively, “physical contact”, “control”, “separation anxiety”, “owner as emotional support”, and “owner as a source of positive emotion”. Because of the three-factor structure of the original AISI, a PCA with a pre-fixed set of three factors was also performed. The resulting subscales mirrored the ones found for the original scale (i.e., ambivalent, avoidant, and disorganized), although four items did not fit the model. Internal reliability appeared to be satisfying for the ambivalent and the disorganized subscales, and good for the avoidant subscale. The theoretical background and the results of this study suggest that the three-dimensional model represents a better solution for the interpretation of the Dog Attachment Insecurity Screening Inventory (D-AISI). Although promising, this scale requires refinement and assessment of additional validity measures.

Development and validation of the Attachment Relationship Inventory-Caregiver Perception 2-5 years (ARI-CP 2-5): Psychometric structure, external validity, and norms

There is a lack of instruments assessing child–caregiver attachment relationships in early childhood to be used in attachment‐based practice, in particular from a caregiver's perception, which is an important factor of clinical importance to take into account in parenting interventions targeting young children. Therefore, the 48‐item Attachment Relationship Inventory—Caregiver Perception 2–5 years (ARI‐CP 2–5) was developed. Survey data of 446 caregivers of 2‐ to 5‐year‐old children were collected, and a subsample of 83 caregivers participated in an observation study. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed a four‐factor structure of secure, avoidant, ambivalent, and disorganized attachment relationship. Indications of configural, metric, and scalar invariance were found for caregivers’ and children's sex, children's age, and population (clinical vs. general population). The four scales showed sufficient internal consistency and significant associations with children's psychopathology, caregivers’ general attachment representations, caregivers’ mind‐mindedness, and population type. Moreover, preliminary evidence for convergent validity with observational attachment measures was found. It is concluded that the ARI‐CP 2–5 is a valid instrument that can be used as part of the screening and assessment of insecure attachment relationships.

TwinLIFE: The Twin Longitudinal Investigation of FEtal Discordance

Lifelong health is thought to be partially set during intrauterine life by persistent epigenetic changes induced by the prenatal environment. To evaluate this hypothesis, we initiated a prospective longitudinal study in monochorionic (MC) twins: the TwinLIFE study. MC twins are monozygotic, thus in origin genetically identical, and share a single placenta. Although MC twins have many environmental factors in common, in one-third of the MC twin pairs, one fetus has significantly less access to nutrients and resources during pregnancy than its co-twin often resulting in a significant discordance in prenatal growth. Hence, MC twins constitute a unique natural experiment to study the influence of the prenatal environment on health. In TwinLIFE, we will chart intrapair differences in DNA methylation focusing on mesenchymal stromal cells isolated from cord as an advanced proxy of epigenetic dysregulation relevant for long-term health consequences. Next, we will follow up the MC twins for growth, cardiovascular and neurodevelopmental outcomes during childhood and evaluate the impact of an epigenetic signature at birth on future health. The current target is to include 100 MC twin pairs, but we aim to continue enrollment after procuring additional funding. TwinLIFE will not only address an unmet clinical need in the high-risk group of MC twins, but may also advance early-life strategies to prevent adverse growth, cardiovascular and neurodevelopmental outcomes in the general population.

Sexual abuse in very young children: a psychological assessment in the Amsterdam Sexual Abuse Case study

Background: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a worldwide problem affecting children of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds. A knowledge gap exists regarding the psychological outcomes for children, boys in particular, who are abused during their early lives. Objective: To provide a descriptive psychological profile of children who experienced sexual abuse as infants or toddlers from a male daycare worker and babysitter, and to assess the psychopathological impact on their parents. Method: Parents of children involved in the Amsterdam Sexual Abuse Case (41 parents; 44 children, age range 3-11 years, 30 boys, 14 girls) completed measures on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), dissociation, sexual and non-sexual behaviour problems, and attachment insecurity in their children, as well as on parental psychological well-being, 3 years after disclosure. Sexual abuse characteristics were obtained from police records. Results: We found that 3% of confirmed child victims had PTSD, 30% sexual behaviour problems, 24% internalizing problems, 27% attachment insecurity, and 18% any psychiatric disorder (including PTSD); 39% were asymptomatic. In parents, we found feelings of guilt, shame, and anger about the abuse of their child; 19% showed PTSD symptoms and 3% showed avoidant and 8% anxious attachment problems in their intimate relationship. Parental symptomatology was related to child symptomatology, except for child sexual behaviour problems. One-quarter of confirmed child victims and 45% of parents had received psychological treatment. Conclusions: Three years after disclosure, extrafamilial CSA in very young children was associated with sexual and non-sexual behaviour problems and attachment insecurity, but rarely with PTSD or dissociation. For parents it was associated with PTSD symptoms and emotional reactions. Assessments and interventions should focus on the wide spectrum of problems that follow CSA, as well as on parental psychopathology and the parent-child relationship. Future follow-up assessments in our longitudinal study should provide insights into longer-term outcomes.