Multiple Caregiving among African Americans and Infant Attachment: The Need for an Ernie Approach

Abstract

Attachments of African Americans should be studied with a focus on cultural practices of multiple caregiving and with an emic approach, in order to detect attachment phenomena inherent in the culture. Misunderstanding of African-American infant attachments is likely if evaluative standards derived from infant caregiving in traditional white middle-class culture and an imposed etic approach are employed. An exploratory study is described to highlight issues that should receive the attention of attachment researchers and to draw attention to the need to expand the scope of discussion on culture and attachment.

Parenting and Preschooler Attachment among Low‐Income Urban African American Families

“…A review article by Jackson (1993) pointed out that despite this empirical legacy, the attachment relationships of African American children had not received systematic empirical study. Jackson (1993) raised compelling questions about the cultural validity of attachment for understanding the socioemotional development of African American children.…”

“…Jackson (1993) questioned the ecological validity of Bowlby and Ainsworth's attachment construct for American Black children. The current study was a preliminary step to examine these issues.…”

“…Jackson (1993) recommended employing an emic (within the culture) approach to describing the socialization and development of African American children's attachment relationships. The study reported herein did not adopt such a research strategy.…”

Success at Catching and Keeping Toddler's Attention: An Examination of Joint Attention Among Low-Income Mothers and Their 2-Year-Olds

“…For example, Gamer et al (1994) have argued for the need to elucidate developmental mechanisms that account for the wide heterogeneity of outcomes for low-income children. Recent research highlighting cross-cultural differences in parenting across both low-and middle-income ethnic minority groups in the US also underscores the ways that styles of parenting are affected by community norms and socialization goals which may be similar in some respects, and different in others, from those goals held by the dominant culture (Hanvood, 1992;Jackson, 1993;Rosier and Corsaro, 1993). By conducting emic research within specific ecological contexts, investigators gain insight into the ways that models of development must be amended to more accurately reflect the complexity of developmental processes within different ecological and cultural frameworks.…”

Effects of Infant's Attachment to Mother and Teacher on Adaptation to Child Care

“…이 같은 결과는 영아의 발달 및 행동 특성에 대한 이해를 위해 애착을 고려할 때, 단지 영아-어머니 관계만을 고려하는 것 보다 다른 성인과 영아간의 관계를 모두 고려하는 것 이 보다 유용하다는 Jackson(1993) 그러나 어린이집 적응에 관한 선행연구들은 어머니-영아, 교사-영아와의 관계를 함께 고려하지 않고 단순히 어머니와의 애착안정성과 영아의 어린이집 적응과의 관계 (오종은, 2001; 이해영, 2006; 허정숙, 2008) (오종은, 2001;Frankel & Bates, 1990;Matas, Arend, & Sroufe, 1978), 유아 대상 연구(김숙령, 1996;이진숙, 2001;Bates, Maslin, & Frankel, 1985 (Carlson, Cicchetti, Barnett, & Braunwald, 1989) (Howes & Hamilton, 1993;Howes, Hamilton, & Phillipsen, 1998;Howes, Matheson, & Hamilton, 1994). 또한 대안 애착의 예측 변인으로 그간 알려진 적절한 양육태도 이외 에 절대적인 양육 시간 또한 매우 의미있는 것으로 나타나고 있는 바 (Barnas, & Cummings, 1997;Raikes, 1993) …”