Disorganized/Disoriented Attachment

Disorganized/Disoriented Attachment is a type of childhood insecure attachment style identified by Mary Ainsworth. During The Strange Situation Test a child with this type of insecure attachment shows some pretty extreme behaviors such as crying during separation, falling to the floor when around mom, and even rocking or hitting themselves.

Many psychologists believe that the mothers of children with this type of insecure attachment may have suffered some type of traumatic loss in their lives that resulted in severe depression. The thought being that there is a connection between mom having severe depression and the child developing this type of insecure attachment.