Psychotherapist as a secure base figure: Validation of the Secure Base Questionnaire (SBQ).

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helena M. Carvalho ◽  
Paula M. Matos
Keyword(s):  
Secure Base

The secure-enough base: a response to "the need for something more than a secure base: is a secure base always enough?"

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 190-202
Author(s):  
Debbie Zimmerman
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experience ◽  
Attachment Security ◽  
Therapeutic Process ◽  
Parallel Process ◽  
Secure Base ◽  
Transitional Space ◽  
Key Aspects

In this response to Michaela Chamberlain's article, I engage with some of the key aspects of her thinking in her exploration of the concept of the secure base and how the theory of its "provision" is tested by her lived experience of working with patients whose attachment-related trauma has compromised their capacity to experience her as a secure base. In particular, I explore the idea of the secure base as a two-person relational construct. I use an attachment lens to consider the complexities and challenges in facilitating attachment security when working with disorganised attachment. I explore the question of the need for an earlier "holding" phase as a precursor to the capacity to relate to a secure base and consider the expansion of the concept of the term secure base to incorporate this earlier "holding" dimension. I also question the possibility and desirability of "complete holding" in working towards attachment security, engaging with Winnicott's theories to explore the ideas of the transitional space of illusion and disillusion, of "good-enough", and of internalisation in the therapeutic process of building attachment security. Finally, I consider the parallel process of the therapist's development of their internal secure base.

Developmental Perspectives on Parenting

2021 ◽  
pp. 25-49
Author(s):  
Rochelle F. Hentges ◽  
Meredith J. Martin
Keyword(s):  
Child Development ◽  
Life Span ◽  
Attachment Theory ◽  
Reproductive Strategies ◽  
Life History Theory ◽  
Developmental Psychology ◽  
Psychological Needs ◽  
Middle Level ◽  
Secure Base ◽  
Parenting Influences

This chapter discusses two leading middle-level theories within evolutionary psychology, which attempt to explain both how and why parenting influences child development across the life span. First, it presents an overview of one of the most influential evolutionary theories in developmental psychology: John Bowlby’s attachment theory. Attachment theory revolutionized the way people understand the nature of the parent–child bond, framing the parent as not just a provider of physical needs but also as a secure base for emotional and psychological needs. These early-life bonds between the caregiver and infant are further proposed to form the basis for relationship attachments across the life span. Next, the chapter addresses how competing strategies toward resource allocation can influence individual differences in parental investment and sensitivity. According to life history theory, differences in the caregiving environment, in turn, promote the formation of distinct reproductive strategies, resulting in behavioral, social, and physiological differences across child development.

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