Clinical interventions for children with attachment problems.

TOPIC: Applying the current evidence to treating clinical populations with attachment disorders.

PURPOSE: This study aims to review the literature regarding the treatment of childhood attachment disorders, with the goal of guiding clinicians towards evidence-based practice.

SOURCES USED: MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsychBooks, EMBASE and PsychINFO were searched and all articles reporting results of a treatment intervention for attachment disorder were reviewed. Ancestry analysis garnered additional sources.

CONCLUSIONS

There are few studies addressing therapeutic interventions for attachment disorder, but the literature supports benefits to the child-parent attachment relationship in biological families in the application of both psychoeducational and psychotherapeutic treatment modalities. A summary of the important components of applying these techniques in therapy is included. Foster and adoptive families with attachment disorders require different types of intervention than biological families. In particular, foster and adoptive parents need to help repair their child's negative internal representations by responding appropriately to their child's cues. Advanced practice psychiatric nurses are well-prepared to provide evidence-based interventions to both biological and foster families with attachment problems. More research is needed to determine the most appropriate treatment interventions for children with attachment disorders.