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Attachment Theory Application
SCOW- 6060
Dr. Johnson
09/15/2025
Case Write-Up: Attachment Theory Application
Attachment theory holds that human beings are born with the ability to form close emotional bonds with caregivers, and that the quality of these early attachments shapes patterns of trust, security, and relational functioning across the life span. Secure attachment leads to resilience and effective coping, while insecure attachment may increase stress vulnerability and relational disturbances.
In the chosen case study, the emergent problem is the client’s emotional regulation and trust in relationships issues, which lead to loneliness and elevated stress levels. According to the attachment theory perspective, the causative factor is the interference or absence of secure attachment relationships, which is the reason behind the distress of the client. Attachment theory would place the aetiology in early relationship experience where the client’s affect needs have not been consistently met, and hence insecure attachment patterns have been formed which are being re-lived in adulthood.
To assess the client, two questions guided by attachment theory would be:
1. “When you are feeling overwhelmed, who do you turn to for comfort and how do they respond?”
2. “How did your earliest caregivers respond to your needs for comfort, protection, or reassurance, and how does that experience affect how you relate to others now?”
Two attachment theory-based interventions are: (1) the creation of a therapeutic relationship that is reflective of a secure base, where the client is able to sense reliability, empathy, and acceptance, and (2) helping the client become aware and reframe negative internal working models of self and other in order to develop more secure modes of relating.
One of the things that I would ask myself reflexively is: “How might my own attachment history or emotional response be shaping the way that I am perceiving and responding to this client’s distress?” Asking this question enables greater levels of empathy and reflexivity, consistent with Foley, Nash, and Munford’s recommendation to utilize attachment as a reflective tool (Bosmans et al., 2022).
References
Bosmans, G., Van Vlierberghe, L., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., Kobak, R., Hermans, D., & van IJzendoorn, M. H. (2022). A learning theory approach to attachment theory: Exploring clinical applications. Clinical child and family psychology review, 25(3), 591-612.
