Helpful Links
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Irving B. Harris Training Center for Infant and Toddler Development – this is a link to the Harris Center home page. The center is housed at the University of Minnesota. Harris Center researchers and personnel have knowledge and expertise in such areas as “attachment theory, research and application; early child development including early brain development; parent-child relationships; and early intervention and prevention, particularly the use of relationship-based perspectives in service delivery” (quoting from their web site). The FHL Foundation supports the idea of using relationship-based perspectives in developing and delivering services. This web site also contains a number of links to resources on attachment theory for both parents and professionals.
Great Ideas in Personality – this is a link to a web site maintained by G. Scott Acton, Ph.D. This web site has a lot of general interest information on personality theories and research. There is a particularly good section on attachment theory (which is where this link goes). This section also contains articles that criticize attachment theory and point out its limitations (well worth reading). Many of these criticisms stem from the fact that, over time, attachment theory has moved away from its roots as a theory of social change. Here at the Foundation we are trying to bring back the “social change” aspects of attachment theory. While visiting this web site you may want to read up on cognitive theories of personality development.
When the Bough Breaks – this is a link to the Filmakers Library listing for the Frontline piece (original broadcast date 05.02.95) that featured attachment theory and research. This Frontline piece featured interviews with attachment theory researchers Alan Sroufe and Robert Karen (a listing for Karen’s book on attachment is shown below). The FHL Foundation has secured copies of this Frontline video from the Filmakers Library. Use the CONTACT button above if you would be interested in receiving a copy of this video (nonprofit agencies only please). Click on this link to view summaries and comments. Note: It has come to our attention that there are two versions of Bough Breaks: the original version created for Canadian audiences by the CBC, and the one Frontline showed in the US. Filmakers Library has the original Canadian version, which does not contain insightful comments made by Robert Karen on attachment and politics. We have not been successful in obtaining copies of the US version.
Fifty Years of Attachment Theory – this is a link to the entry at Amazon.com. This book is written by Sir Richard Bowlby, John Bowlby’s son. The full reference is in the Reference area under the Resource menu. Here’s a review of Sir Richard’s book by the Foundation’s president:
“I’ve had the pleasure of hearing Sir Richard Bowlby speak on three separate occasions. By his own admission, Sir Richard is not a researcher nor is he a clinician. If you are looking for information on current attachment theory trends in either of these two areas, then this book will disappoint. However, if you are looking for a ‘behind the scenes’ look at attachment theory through the eyes of the ‘son of attachment’ (John Bowlby being the father), then this is a great little volume. Sir Richard has a perspective that is hard to find anywhere else. Sir Richard is eminently qualified to speak on such topics as, ‘After fifty years, why hasn’t attachment theory caught on?’ Sir Richard was there as his father brought together the various pieces of his theory over a period of decades. Sir Richard was there through it all—John‘s successes and his failures, his triumphs and his misgivings. Sir Richard is carrying on his father’s legacy as attachment theory’s most dedicated public intellectual. If you want a a great‘behind the scenes’ book, this is a good one. Attachment theory could use a dozen more just like Sir Richard. I’m sure his father is very proud.”
The FHL Foundation has secured copies of Sir Richard’s book from the publisher. Use the CONTACT US button above if you would be interested in receiving a copy of this book (nonprofit agencies only please).
The Baby Brain Connection – this is a link to a web site maintained by the San Francisco Chronicle. This link will take you to a printable version of an article on the baby-brain connection. The tagline for this article by Rob Waters reads: “Armed with new research on developing brain structures, social workers can help fix troubled baby/parent relationships.”
“The Pornography of Everyday Life” DVD by Dr. Jane Caputi – this is a link to a description of Dr. Caputi’s DVD over at Berkeley Media. Dr. Caputi’s DVD looks at the very real possibility that many of the images contained in the so-called mainstream media are constructed using the same processes and purposes as can be found in the world of backroom pornography. In essence, many mainstream images fall on a continuum that includes the images that are found in backroom pornography. Dr. Caputi argues that it’s not so much where the images are found, but what intentions or purposes are involved. As examples, infantilizing women or “adultifying” children are two processes that often link together the mainstream and the backroom. For more on adultification patterns within our culture (e.g., prematurely turning children into adults), see Kay Horowitz’s book “Ready or Not” (see the Reference area under the Resource menu). The Foundation’s president has written a summary of “Ready or Not” (see the Reprints area under the Resources menu).
