1. Objectifs

Intentions :
« [...] [O]ur study aimed to compare the patterns of attachment observed in a group of 4- to 5-year-old children referred because of neglect to Quebec social services to those observed in a control group [...]. » (p. 269)

Questions/Hypothèses:
« Based on previous research, our hypotheses were the following:
1. There should be significantly more insecure children in the neglected group than in the control group (van IJzendoorn et al., 1999).
2. The disorganized pattern should not be prevailing but should be more important in the neglected subsample than in the control group (Cicchetti and Barnett, 1992).
3. Neglected children’s narratives (even those classified in the casual-avoidant or busy-ambivalent categories) should display more disorganization markers than those of the control group children as a consequence of neglect’s tremendously negative impact (Crittenden, 2000; Culp et al., 1991; Erickson and Egeland, 1996; Hildyard and Wolfe, 2002). » (p. 269-270)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
L’échantillon comprend un groupe de 39 enfants négligés provenant de trois régions de la province de Québec et un groupe contrôle de 35 enfants montréalais.

Instruments :
- Questionnaire socio-économique
- Parental Stress Index (Bigras et al., 1996)
- Six-Year Attachment Doll Play Classification System (George and Solomon, 1990, 1996, 2000)
- Disorganization Scales (George and Solomon, 1998)

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

« A number of studies (see Éthier, 1999) have shown that neglect has a deleterious impact on children’s development. However, the effect of neglect on a child’s internal representations of their family still needs to be investigated. The aim of this study was to
examine the attachment patterns observed in a subsample of neglected children as compared with a control group, using a representational assessment method. [...] Results showed: (1) a significant difference in attachment representation classifications between the neglected group and the control group even when socio-economic status and maternal stress were controlled for and (2) a significantly higher proportion of avoidant attachment classification in the neglected group. Moreover, neglected avoidant children displayed more overall disorganized markers, and specifically more frightening markers, than normative avoidant children; they also depicted their mother as being less available than normative children. These results are discussed in the light of other findings as well as on theoretical grounds. » (p. 264)