What is attachment?

Attachment is the deep and enduring emotional bond that infants and children form with those they depend upon for care. It is a relationship that develops between a child and his/her caregiver in the first few years of life, within the context of the child’s ‘need’ to feel safe, secure, and protected.

A child’s attachment needs are activated when the child is in distress (i.e. scared, sick, hurt, hungry or tired). When attachment needs are activated, a child exhibits attachment behaviours (i.e. crying, holding arms out, clinging, following the caregiver, and asking to be held). Exhibiting attachment behaviours is how children attempt to bring their caregivers close in order to satisfy their attachment needs. Attachment is the instinctive mechanism that attempts to ensure the survival of infants and children by motivating their caregivers to take care of them.