Parent attachment, childrearing behavior, and child attachment: Mediated effects predicting preschoolers' externalizing behavior

Attachment theory provides an interesting background for thinking about externalizing behavior (EB) in early childhood and for understanding how parenting influences the child's outcomes. The study examined how attachment and parenting could be combined to explain preschoolers' EB. Data were collected from 117 preschoolers aged from 4 to 6 clinically referred for EB and their parents from a middle-high income population. Child attachment was measured with the Attachment Q-set; parent's remembered attachment in the family of origin with the CaMir. Child attachment played a crucial role in mediating the link between parent attachment and EB as well as the link between parenting and EB. Paternal attachment displayed a direct and an indirect effect through controlling parenting and child attachment on child EB. Maternal attachment was a distal predictor associated with EB through child attachment, and independent of controlling parenting. These results are discussed with their applied and scientific implications.

Research highlights
► Child attachment mediated the link between parent attachment and child behavior.
► Child attachment mediated the link between parenting and child behavior.
► Paternal attachment had both direct and indirect effects on child child behavior.
► Maternal attachment was a distal predictor of child behavior through child attachment.