Attachment research in German speaking countries as related to present thinking in attachment theory

Six contributions to the present special issue on German language attachmen t research are discussed. In a brief historical sketch of attachment theory , which originated from psychoanalytic theory, the eminent empirical orient ation of Bowlby is emphasized. It is based on natural observations of child ren and of different styles of maternal responding to infants' communicatio ns. The role of Ainsworth's strange situation procedure in discovering diff erential consequences for the infants' attachment quality has become fundam ental for attachment research. All 6 studies in the present issue take the strange situation as their starting point, because it reveals secure and in secure attachment qualities at a very young age. These consist of infants' different strategic behaviour patterns in using their attachment figures as a secure base. The studies presented here aim in various directions. They are evaluated within the field of present international attachment research .