In this presentation Professor Barnett will review basic attachment principles: organised secure and insecure, as well as disorganised and unresolved patterns, and the implications of distorted or disrupted patterns in parents and infants. Everyone experiences loss, disruptions and other traumatic events, but the crucial factor is whether these are resolved or not. The Adult Attachment Interview material reveals loss and other traumatic events, and considers the question of resolution or lack of it for the individual. What is trauma for an infant? What does an infant or parent have to do to survive trauma? What are the impacts? How do we help both parent and infant to survive?
Applicable techniques and the fundamental requirement of establishing a ‘secure base’ in treatment and in the community for both parent and infant, will be discussed. Those who work in this field often have personl reasons for doing so and this can render them vulnerable. They too need a secure base to be provided, so the work environment is a critical factor.