A LONGITUDINAL-STUDY OF THE RELATION BETWEEN REPRESENTATIONS OF ATTACHMENT IN CHILDHOOD AND COGNITIVE-FUNCTIONING IN CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE

Eighty-five Icelandic children (41 girls and 44 boys) participated in a study on the relations among attachment representations, self-confid ence, and cognitive functioning in childhood and adolescence. Attachme nt representations and self-confidence were assessed at age 7 on the b asis of children's responses to a separation story and observations ma de by independent observers. Cognitive functioning was measured at age s 7, 9, 12, 15, and 17 years based on a battery of Piagetian tasks ass essing concrete and formal reasoning. Children with a secure attachmen t representation were favored in their cognitive performance in childh ood and adolescence. Children with an insecure-disorganized attachment representation were particularly disadvantaged on deductive reasoning tasks. Self-confidence played a significant but varying role in media ting the effects of attachment representations on cognitive functionin g. The study controlled for IQ and attention difficulties.