Attachment and social competence

This chapter reviews the existing studies, beginning with a general consideration of mechanisms proposed to account for the effects of attachment on social development. It also reviews studies of social development during childhood, as well as the growing literature on adult attachment and concurrent social functioning. Attachment experiences are thought to result in internal working models that incorporate an appraisal of the self and the self in relationships which shape a general outlook on social experiences. The literature on attachment and social competence is both extensive and inconsistent. Most theorists agree that social competence is multiply determined. The most convincing and coherent findings in support of a role for attachment in the development of social competence came from the Minnesota longitudinal study, an in-depth ongoing investigation marked by a well-articulated view of potential mechanisms and outcomes.