A Secure Base: Parent-Child Attachment and Healthy Human Development (Paperback)

by John Bowlby (Author) "During the early months of 1980 I was giving lectures in the United States..." (more)
Key Phrases: abused toddlers, attachment behaviour, intimate emotional bonds, Mary Ainsworth, United States, James Robertson (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal
This collection of recent lectures by a British psychiatrist supports the theory that there are three patterns of parent-child attachmentsecure, anxious resistant, and anxious avoidantand explores the consequences of all three. Bowlby affirms that the psychologically healthy person is one who has learned to explore the world confidently, returning to an attachment figure for affirmation and comfort when necessary. The sections on delinquency and family violence and on adults suffering from an "amnesia" imposed on them as children are compelling in their practical applications. Recommended for academic libraries but of limited value to the layperson or parent. Nancy M. Laskowski, Free Lib. of Philadelphia
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
The renowned psychiatrist continues to explore the nature of early parental bonds and offers further evidence of how strong emotional ties promote mental health.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (August 21, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465075975
• ISBN-13: 978-0465075973
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #46,989 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bowlby's Contribution, August 24, 2006

By	Joseph Palombo (Highland Park, Illinois) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This collection of lectures and previously published papers brings together the essentials of Bolwlby's contributions. The first paper summaries his work on the effects of separation of children from their caregivers that was intrumental in bringing ciritical changes in the manner that hospitals and other institutions deal with children's separations from their caregivers. He succinctly summarizes his formulation of attachment theory, which is now regarded as the keystone for understanding infants' early relationships with their caregivers. As a bonus, there are two papers on psychoanalysis as a science that forshadow the need to bring together psychoanalysis as a discipline and the emerging knowledge about brain development that is being acquired by neuroscientists. It is a pleasure to read this small volume. Joe Palombo

43 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Beyond Belief, August 7, 2000

By	James V. Batley "Jim Smiling" (Gaithersburg, MD USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Freud saw the development of the ability to form affectionate bonds through the dark glass of psychoanalysis. Bowlby and his associates have given us the ability to see the development of inter-personal relations with the clarity of the scientific method and with deep human understanding. Anyone interested in improving our ability to love one another will find this book useful.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bowlby's work shines, February 7, 2009

By	SusanJElliott (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

My readers who know my work (see Getting Past Your Breakup: How to Turn a Devastating Loss into the Best Thing That Ever Happened to You) know that I rely heavily on John Bowlby's work. I did not have this book when I was doing my academic research and writing on grief, but I did use a lot of his work (with Mary Ainsworth) on attachment and development. It is there in his 3 volume set on Attachment and Loss. But this book fleshes it out more and though it repeats a lot of what is in the first volume on Attachment, it is still worth it to get. Especially if you are a Bowlby junkie like I am.