Attachment-Based Therapy

Attachment-based therapy refers to interventions and approaches based on attachment theory, originated by John Bowlby, applied to individuals, couples, families, social systems and public health programs, including interventions designed specifically for adoption and foster care. Attachment theory has become a major scientific theory of biopsychosocial development with one of the broadest and deepest research lines in modern psychology, and continues to inform approaches to improving human health. Attachment itself is a complex, still-evolving concept: at least five attachment theories and several attachment assessments exist, generally situated in developmental or social psychology, and these can differ in how they understand relational problems and describe the attachment concept; knowing which theory a given therapy relies on, which part of the theory it addresses, and whether it modifies the underlying theory matters, since failure to be clear about that has in the past led to coercive and harmful therapies claiming an attachment basis. Some attachment therapies use attachment assessments and some do not, and most modern therapeutic models incorporate attachment to at least some degree.