ABSTRACT
Attachment is often thought of as a dyadic process involving two people, usually a mother and child, in a relationship. However, these two individuals almost always exist in the context of some sort of family, often including a father, or step-father and frequently other relatives. This chapter considers issues of the assessment of attachment in such larger units. A clinical vignette
Rebecca (6) was referred for treatment because her mother Rose was becoming very concerned that she was ‘morbidly’ preoccupied with death and dead things, continually demanded attention from her and asked her endless questions about death. When outside the home she was said to want to pause and explore dead animals on the road, such as hedgehogs, birds or badgers that had been killed by cars. She was also said to be very obsessed with anything on television that contained any mention of death. Her mother was scrutinising closely what she watched and was also overwhelmed by Rebecca constantly asking questions about death.
