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Attachment Style, Home-Leaving Age and Behavioral Problems Among Residential Care Children

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Abstract

In a prospective study, the attachment style, home-leaving age, length of time in residential care, and behavioral problems among Israeli residential care children (N = 68), were studied. Data analyses showed that children removed from their homes at a later age suffered from higher levels of anxiety, depression and social problems compared to children taken from their homes at the age of 7 or less. It was also found that a prolonged stay (over 2 years) in residential care was related to higher levels of anxiety and depression. An interaction effect of a child’s attachment style and home-leaving age was found in the child’s level of aggressive behavior.

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Acknowledgements

Gratitude and appreciation to Professor Moshe Adad for his comments and elucidations. To Mrs. Orly Dvir, director of the residential care facility for her assistance in the conduct of the study and to NOFIM Organization named after DR. Hanna Eshed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Criminology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, 52900, Israel

    Mally Shechory

  2. The College of Judea and Samaria, Bar-Ilan University, Ariel, Israel

    Mally Shechory & Eliane Sommerfeld

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  1. Mally Shechory
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  2. Eliane Sommerfeld
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Correspondence to Mally Shechory.

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Shechory, M., Sommerfeld, E. Attachment Style, Home-Leaving Age and Behavioral Problems Among Residential Care Children. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 37, 361–373 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-007-0051-z

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