Intergenerational Transmission of Attachment: The Role of Intelligence

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Intergenerational Transmission of Attachment: The Role of Intelligence
Language: English
Authors: Jana Runze (ORCID 0000-0003-1792-3357), Marinus H. Van IJzendoorn (ORCID 0000-0003-1144-454X), Annemieke M. Witte, Charlotte A. M. Cecil (ORCID 0000-0002-2389-5922), Marian J. Bakermans-Kranenburg
Source: JCPP Advances. 2025 5(4).
Availability: Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 10
Publication Date: 2025
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Descriptors: Attachment Behavior, Intelligence, Intelligence Quotient, Cognitive Ability, Cognitive Processes, Children, Scores, Predictor Variables, Cohort Analysis, Longitudinal Studies, Twins, Genetics
DOI: 10.1002/jcv2.70013
ISSN: 2692-9384
Abstract: Background: In their recent paper, Del Giudice and Haltigan argue that attachment in childhood and attachment representations in adulthood are influenced by the cognitive capabilities of children and parents, that would causally link parents' attachment states of mind to children's attachment. In the current pre-registered study, we empirically explored the idea of an association between attachment and cognition using phenotypic child IQ and parent and child IQ-related polygenic scores as predictors of children's attachment behavior and attachment representations. Methods: We used data from the Leiden Consortium on Individual Development study (L-CID, n = 992), a two-cohort longitudinal twin study, in which attachment representations were measured in parents and their 9-year-old children using the Attachment Script Assessment (ASA). Polygenic scores of IQ were computed for parents and their children using PRSice-2 and phenotypic child IQ was measured as well. We split the twin sample in two groups randomly to prevent non-independence of data and conducted structural equation models. Results: Neither parental nor child polygenic scores of IQ predicted representations of attachment. In one cohort, phenotypically measured IQ predicted attachment. Conclusions: This preliminary study did not find convincing support for a role of IQ in the intergenerational transmission of attachment.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1491410
Database: ERIC
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Abstract:Background: In their recent paper, Del Giudice and Haltigan argue that attachment in childhood and attachment representations in adulthood are influenced by the cognitive capabilities of children and parents, that would causally link parents' attachment states of mind to children's attachment. In the current pre-registered study, we empirically explored the idea of an association between attachment and cognition using phenotypic child IQ and parent and child IQ-related polygenic scores as predictors of children's attachment behavior and attachment representations. Methods: We used data from the Leiden Consortium on Individual Development study (L-CID, n = 992), a two-cohort longitudinal twin study, in which attachment representations were measured in parents and their 9-year-old children using the Attachment Script Assessment (ASA). Polygenic scores of IQ were computed for parents and their children using PRSice-2 and phenotypic child IQ was measured as well. We split the twin sample in two groups randomly to prevent non-independence of data and conducted structural equation models. Results: Neither parental nor child polygenic scores of IQ predicted representations of attachment. In one cohort, phenotypically measured IQ predicted attachment. Conclusions: This preliminary study did not find convincing support for a role of IQ in the intergenerational transmission of attachment.
ISSN:2692-9384
DOI:10.1002/jcv2.70013