Chapter Two: Literature Review
Attachment Parenting
Attachment parenting is
an intuitive style of parenting that actively promotes secure attachment
through natural, responsive parenting behaviors. Attachment parenting is
dynamic, much like the attachment relationship itself. There are no rigid
schedules to follow, the parents must instead trust their ability to parent
and to know their child better than anyone else in the world. New mothers
and fathers are urged to take full responsibility for their baby's care
in the early months in order to facilitate the development of responsive
parenting skills. Unlike our culture's rather casual use of child care,
the attachment parenting style suggests that parents avoid unnecessary
separation from their small infant.
This approach does require
flexibility and paradigm shifting for most parents in our culture as they
learn to use some of the practices common to this style of parenting. Instead
of "getting away" from the baby for a date night out, parents are encouraged
to bring the infant along, nurse in the sling and then relax and enjoy
their dinner or movie while the baby sleeps in the sling. Instead of "training"
their child to sleep through the night by leaving the baby to lie crying
alone in a crib, this style embraces cosleeping and its benefits for breastfeeding
mother-child pairs (Sears, 1995b). As the babies raised in attachment parenting
mature and become more independent, parents continue to act as a secure
base, encouraging developmentally appropriate exploration while remaining
consistently available and responsive when needed. This is the type of
parenting behavior that John Bowlby, the father of attachment theory, described
as producing the most emotionally stable and secure children (Bowlby, 1988).
The initial outlay of effort in attachment parenting is higher than in
a more detached parenting style, however the heightened sensitivity and
responsiveness pay off in children who cry and fuss less as babies, are
easier to discipline as children, are confident and friendly, and demonstrate
a level of empathy for others which is uncommon in today's children
(Sears, 1995a; Sears & Sears, 1993).
© 2001 Tami E.
Breazeale
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