Caregiving: The forgotten element in attachment

In attachment theory, an attachment behavioral control system in the child and a complementary caregiving systemin the parent act together to protect the young. The attachment account, however, fails to supply a motivation fo r caregiving, As a result, it cannot give a theoretical explanation for the responsive and attentive behaviors empirically observed in caregivers of s ecure children. In this article, we present an account of caregiving that p laces emotion at the center of caregiving (the connection theoretical orien tation). In this account, the dyadic emotion of caring serves as an autonom ous motivation to see that the needs of a specific dependent are met. Unlik e the "on-off" caregiving in attachment theories, connection caring is conc eptualized as enduring and variable: Caregivers experience different levels of caring over the course of a relationship. Through the emotional concept s of caring, empathy, and responsibility, the connection theoretical orient ation is able to provide the coherent account of caregiving that the attach ment theoretical orientation's cybernetic concepts have been unable to supp ly.