Sofie Stender defends her PhD thesis
Title
'Disinhibited Attachment Behavior among Infants of Mothers with Severe Mental Illness'.
Time and place
10th June 2022 at 1:30 pm (CET).
The defence will take place in Auditorium 1, The Faculty Library, Gothersgade 140, 1123 Copenhagen.
After the defence there will be a reception in the canteen (room 03.2.M202) at the Department of Psychology, Øster Farimagsgade 2A, 2nd floor, 1353 Copenhagen.
Assessment committee
- Professor Stig Poulsen, Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark (chair)
- Professor Kaija Puura, Tampere University, Finland
- Associate Professor Rianne Kok, Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands
Supervisor
- Professor Susanne Harder, Department of Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Abstract
Disinhibited attachment behavior among infants is found to be persistent, is associated with maladaptive behavior and impairment in later childhood and is therefore of concern. Disinhibited attachment behavior has primarily been studied among institutionalized children. More recently, studies have also identified disinhibited attachment behavior in children reared at home by their biological parents with psychosocial challenges.
The PhD dissertation reviews the prevalence of disinhibited attachment behavior in children reared at home by parents with psychosocial challenges, and the effect of parental risk factors on disinhibited attachment behavior in children.
Using data from the WARM study (Wellbeing and resilience: mechanisms of transmission of health and risk in parents with complex mental health problems and their offspring), the PhD dissertation further 1) examines the degree of disinhibited attachment behavior in infant 1 year of age of mothers with severe mental illness compared to infants from a no-diagnose control group and 2) examines if maternal disrupted caregiving behavior during interaction with their infant at 4 month of age can predict disinhibited behavior in the infants at 1 year.
