Explorations into Attachment Classifications: an Intersection Between Attachment and Object Relations in a South African Context

Attachment theory has implications for relational functioning across the lifespan. However, attachment theory describes only the observable, behavioural aspects of attachment, illustrating little about the internal, psychic world of the individual. Using the Attachment Story Completion Test to analyse at risk children aged 8-12 years in a South African setting, coupled with an object relational analysis, the author investigates the way in which attachment is traditionally classified in discrete categories as well as our understanding of the internal experience of insecure attachments.