Attachment theory: progress and future directions

- Attachment measures need to be improved; dimensional measures may be superior.
- Attachment is influenced by the environment but the determinants remain elusive.
- Attachment is transmitted between generations more weakly than previously thought.
- Attachment in children is not highly stable; change is the norm not the exception.
- Attachment is linked to outcomes, but not strongly; effects vary by type and domain.

Attachment is a key subfield in the area of parenting and parent-child relationships research. In this brief overview, we summarise what we consider to be the state-of-the-art of attachment research, focusing primarily on the nature and significance of attachment in infancy and early childhood. We review 4 major topics that are central issues in the scientific literature on attachment: (1) the role of the environment in the development of attachment, (2) the intergenerational transmission of patterns of attachment, (3) the stability of attachment patterns through early adulthood, and (4) the role of attachment in adjustment and maladjustment. We conclude by highlighting several critical unresolved issues and priorities for future research.