The relation between the seperation anxiety and the signs of anxiety in children with their mothers' attachments types

The aim of this study is to analyze the relationship between the maternal seperation anxiety level of both childhood and adult onset, the maternal attachment style, and the symptoms of anxiety in children between 3-5 years old. It is also aimed to investigate the relationship between the maternal anxiety level, maternal attachment style and the type social behaviours of chidren at school. The study sample consist of 49 children who study in a private school in İstanbul province. Early Childhood Inventory-4: Parent Form (ECI-4:PF) was used to evaluate the symptoms of anxiety in children, Adult Seperation Anxiety Questionnaire (ASA) and Seperation Anxiety Symptom Inventory (SASI) were used to evaluate maternal seperation anxiety level of both childhood and adult onset, and maternal attachment style was evaluated with Adult Attachment Scale (AAS). Moreover, Ankara Development Scanning Inventory (ADSI) was used to determine the childrens' developmental stages and a Turkish Version Of The School Social Behavior Scales (SSBS) was used to analyze behavioural pattern of the children in school. A significant positive correlation was detected between the anxiety score of children which is obtained from ECI-4: PF and the ASA total score, the SASI total score, AAS Insecure Avoidant subtest score and AAS Insecure Ambivalent subtest score. Also, a statistical significant correlation was found between AAS Secure Attachment subtest score and SSBS Self-Secure Ability subscore, SSBS Academic Skills subscore. These results demonstrate the relation between anxiety and attachment in preschool children and their mothers is specific and affected from each other. The results of our study point out the importance of participation of mothers' in the interventions on preschool children's anxiety and behaviours.