ABSTRACT
John Bowlby, child psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, was the first to describe the importance of attachment in human development. Attachment behaviours are biologically important because the infant's survival may depend on staying close to the caregiver. The normal behaviour that may be observed during a clinical interview is stranger anxiety, which is shyness and wariness towards strange people, and is often associated with an increase in other attachment behaviours. Human beings have a need for attachment to specific others throughout the life cycle. An infant who is securely attached is more likely to be able to leave her mother to explore the environment: the caregiver functions as a safe returning point who can be relied on to be available when necessary. Internal working models are very important in understanding the difficulties faced by looked-after children, foster-carers and adopters.
