Attachment and Interaction: From Bowlby to Current Clinical Theory and Practice

322 Pages·2014·1.09 MB·English

by  Mario Marrone

Attachment and Interactionisan accessible introduction to the history and evolution of A
attachment theory, which traces the early roots of attachment theory from the work of T
its creator, John Bowlby, through to the most recent theoretical developments and their T
clinical applications. A
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Mario Marrone explores how attachment theory can inform the way in which therapists
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work with their patients, and what the practical implications are of using such an
approach. By bringing together personal anecdotes from his own experiences as M
Bowlby’s supervisee, with clear explanations of Bowlby’s ideas, Marrone creates a
memorable and engaging account of attachment theory. This new, updated edition E
includes references to bereavement, sexuality and the application of attachment-based N
principles to individual, family and group psychotherapy.
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SECOND EDITION

This clear exposition of attachment theory is relevant and valuable reading for trainees A
AT TAC H M E N T
and practising individual and group psychotherapists, family therapists and mental N
health professionals – as well as anyone with an interest in John Bowlby and the
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evolution of psychotherapy.
INTERACTION
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Formerly an NHS psychiatrist, Mario Marroneisapsychoanalyst and psychotherapist N
with a private practice in London. He is co-founder of the International Attachment AND
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Network and the journal Attachment and Human Development and a member of the
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British Psychoanalytic Society and the Association of Independent Psychoanalysts. He
FROM BOWLBY TO CURRENT
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has also trained in group analysis and psychodrama. Mario Marrone received regular
clinical supervision from John Bowlby, the founder of attachment theory, over a period A CLINICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE
of ten years, from 1980 until shortly before Bowlby’s death in 1990. He has lectured C
internationally on attachment theory and related subjects. Nicola Diamondis a senior
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MARIO MARRONE
lecturer in Psychosocial Studies, University of East London, and teaches at the
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Tavistock Clinic. She is also a psychoanalytic psychotherapist with the British O
Psychotherapy Foundation and runs a private practice.
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Jessica Kingsley Publishers N
73 Collier Street E
London N1 9BE,UK
WITH A CONTRIBUTION BY NICOLA DIAMOND
400 Market Street,Suite 400
Philadelphia,PA 19106,USA
www.jkp.com
Cover design by Blue Box Design JKP

ATTACHMENT AND INTERACTION
of related interest
Attachment, Trauma, and Healing
Understanding and Treating Attachment
Disorder in Children and Families
Terry M. Levy and Michael Orlans
ISBN 978 1 84905 888 9
eISBN 978 0 85700 597 7
Understanding Attachment and Attachment Disorders
Theory, Evidence and Practice
Vivien Prior and Danya Glaser
ISBN 978 1 84310 245 8
eISBN 978 1 84642 546 2
Part of the Child and Adolescent Mental Health series
Nurturing Adoptions
Creating Resilience after Neglect and Trauma
Deborah D. Gray
ISBN 978 1 84905 891 9
eISBN 978 0 85700 607 3
Nurturing Attachments
Supporting Children who are Fostered or Adopted
Kim S. Golding
ISBN 978 1 84310 614 2
eISBN 978 1 84642 750 3
Foster Parenting Step-by-Step
How to Nurture the Traumatized Child and Overcome Conflict
Dr. Kalyani Gopal
Foreword by Irene Clements
ISBN 978 1 84905 937 4
eISBN 978 0 85700 751 3
Attachment in Common Sense and Doodles
A Practical Guide
Miriam Silver
Foreword by Camila Batmanghelidjh
ISBN 978 84905 314 3
eISBN 978 0 85700 624 0
Understanding Disorganized Attachment
Theory and Practice for Working with Children and Adults
David Shemmings and Yvonne Shemmings
ISBN 978 1 84905 044 9
eISBN 978 0 85700 241 9
ATTACHMENT
INTERACTION
AND
FROM BOWLBY TO CURRENT
CLINICAL THEORY AND PRACTICE
MARIO MARRONE
WITH A CONTRIBUTION BY NICOLA DIAMOND
Jessica Kingsley Publishers
London and Philadelphia
First published in 1998 by Jessica Kingsley Publishers
This second edition published in 2014
by Jessica Kingsley Publishers
73 Collier Street
London N1 9BE, UK
and
400 Market Street, Suite 400
Philadelphia, PA 19106, USA
www.jkp.com
Copyright © Mario Marrone 1998, 2014
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any
material form (including photocopying or storing it in any medium by
electronic means and whether or not transiently or incidentally to some other
use of this publication) without the written permission of the copyright
owner except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs
and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright
Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N
8TS. Applications for the copyright owner’s written permission to reproduce
any part of this publication should be addressed to the publisher.
Warning: The doing of an unauthorised act in relation to a copyright work
may result in a both a civil claim for damages and criminal prosecution.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Marrone, Mario.
Attachment and interaction : from Bowlby to current
clinical theory and practice / Mario Marrone. --
Second edition.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-84905-209-2
1. Attachment behavior. 2. Attachment behavior in
children. 3. Parent and child. 4. Object relations
(Psychoanalysis) 5. Psychoanalysis. I. Title.
BF575.A86M38 2014
155.9’2--dc23
2013047026
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978 1 84905 209 2
eISBN 978 0 85700 444 4
CONTENTS
Chapter 1 John Bowlby ................................ 7
Chapter 2 Attachment Theory .......................... 27
Chapter 3 Empirical Research and Clinical Observations:
Intersecting Points. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Chapter 4 The Evolution of Attachment Theory ............ 55
Chapter 5 On Representational Models .................. 79
Chapter 6 Assessment of Attachment Representations ....... 93
Chapter 7 Dysfunctional Parenting ..................... 115
Chapter 8 Meetings and Divergences in the Context of
Psychoanalytic Theory ....................... 132
Chapter 9 On Transference: Background Aspects .......... 176
Mario Marrone and Nicola Diamond
Chapter 10 Ghosts on the Couch: A Clinical Exploration of
Identification with Maltreating Parents Across
Generations ............................... 196
Chapter 11 Application of Attachment Theory to
Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy ................. 210
Chapter 12 On Iatrogenia: When the Wrong Clinical
Intervention Causes Harm ................... 219
Chapter 13 Attachment Theory and Group Psychotherapy .... 233
Chapter 14 Psychotherapeutic Resources in General
Psychiatry ................................ 246
Chapter 15 Towards an Attachment-Informed Approach to
Intermodal Psychotherapy .................... 260
Chapter 16 On Bowlby’s Legacy: Further Explorations ...... 266
Nicola Diamond
REFERENCES ......................................293
SUBJECT INDEX ...................................310
AUTHOR INDEX ...................................318
CHAPTER 1
John Bowlby
Introduction
Perhaps the best way of introducing attachment theory is to talk
first about John Bowlby, its creator. In doing this, I shall mix some
biographical details with some personal impressions and give an
outline of the way his ideas developed. The main theme of this
book relates to the study of: (1) the evolution of John Bowlby’s
ideas; and (2) his legacy: how attachment theory has developed up
to the present day and its clinical applications.
I do not expect this synthesis to be impeccable and
comprehensive, because we are dealing here with a paradigm
which is developing quickly, with all sorts of implications and
ramifications. There is thus no way of encompassing all the
available information. I shall be satisfied if I succeed in producing
a coherent reference framework from which the reader can develop
his or her own inquiries. In fact, since I published the first edition
of this book important developments have taken place and many
more books have been published on this subject.
I had regular contact with John Bowlby during a period of ten
years (from 1980 until shortly before his death in 1990). Initially
we met regularly at the Tavistock Clinic in London, often once a
week, to discuss clinical cases and psychoanalytic theory. In later
years I often visited him at his home. Also, as I shall explain later,
we met in seminars held at the Institute of Group Analysis. I
remember him with the greatest affection. I can still hear his voice,
when I knocked on the door of his room on the fourth floor of
the Tavistock Clinic and he said in his strong low-pitched voice:
‘Come in, Mario!’
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ATTACHMENT AND INTERACTION
He was a tall, well-built man, not very expressive. Yet he had a
natural and amicable freshness. He dressed neatly but informally.
During the time of our relationship, he often wore cotton checked
shirts and a light-coloured sports jacket.
Bowlby was not prone to intrusive questioning or to unnecessary
self-disclosure. He never commented on my personal issues unless
I offered them for discussion. Similarly, he was reserved about his
personal life, including his family. His wife, Ursula Bowlby, said
that this style of self-restraint was part of his character.
Bowlby’s early years
Bowlby was born in London on 26 February 1907. His father,
Major-General Sir Anthony Bowlby, son of a journalist, was a
successful surgeon. His mother, May Mostyn, was the daughter of
a clergyman who lived in a Huntingdonshire village. John was one
of six children in the family.
His parents’ attitude was rather aloof, with little capacity to
express affection and show playful enjoyment of life. John made
valiant efforts as a boy to lighten the sombre, bad-tempered
atmosphere at home. Ursula Bowlby says that this side of his
family never left him completely. However, there were long family
holidays in Scotland, when the family atmosphere improved.
Probably, John also found secondary attachment figures in Minnie,
his first, much-loved, nursemaid and, subsequently, in Nanna
Friend, an intelligent disciplinarian.
Colin Murray Parkes (1995) says:
it is hard to explain why [Bowlby] showed so few of the cognitive
and other impairments which he attributed to such deprivation,
for John Bowlby stands as one of the most brilliant and intrepid
thinkers of his time and those who knew him well found
loyalty and warmth behind his reserved behaviour. Perhaps the
question that we need to ask is how the many influences on his
life converged to influence the formation of his truly exceptional
character. (pp.247–248)
In 1914, when John was seven years old, the war came. He and
his elder brother were sent to boarding school. John deplored
the emotional atmosphere in that school. Yet his intellectual
development was not impaired and he did well with his studies.
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