ABSTRACT
Modern Americans' opinions about early childhood show that they doubt the obvious and believe the absurd. They forget that babies need a reliable and secure base if they are to dare to be explorers. Such a process of liberation, however, means servitude to the status quo. It is unlikely that children's developmental needs should miraculously and conveniently change just when adult career patterns and life styles required them to change. The modern American child's behavioral, emotional, and learning difficulties, most especially his and her inability to thrive, warns us of the fragility of our illusions. When parents tune into their infants' communicative signals, interpret them accurately, and respond in ways that meet their infants' needs, children are more likely to respond in synchronous ways, display signs of secure infant attachment, and exhibit better behavioral and emotional adjustment later in life.
