How To Help Teachers Identify Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) In Students: It Is Similar To Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)

Book Synopsis: The purpose of this book is to teach educators about how to identify attachment problems that are very similar to Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD.) What is attachment theory? Edward John M. Bowlby (1907-1990) was a British psychologist, psychiatrist, and a psychoanalyst, notable for his interests in child development and for his pioneering work in “Attachment Theory.”

According to Bowlby the Psychologist, “attachment is an emotional bond to another person…Attachment has lasting psychological connectedness between human beings.” (Bowlby 1969, p.194) The attachment theory is centered on the role a mother or significant others play in raising children who grow up and become emotionally secure because their needs as children were met. The impact formed during attachment lasts a lifetime, it also establishes a sense of security and dependency, therefore, this enables a child to explore their world without reservations.

Here’s an important quote from Ashley Montagu, “Touch is the one sense that we cannot live without.” When children are kissed or hugged, they release a powerful hormone called oxytocin, which plays a huge role in maternal attachment.

What is Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD)? According to DSM-IV-TR (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 4th edition – text revision), Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) describes the clinical condition wherein children, as a consequence of pathogenic care (disregard for the child’s basic emotional needs can lead to severe psychological and cognitive dysfunction and deviant developmental trajectories of brain maturation) fail to seek proximity with a preferred caregiver and are unable to form an attachment relation. DSM-IV distinguishes two forms of RAD, the inhibited and disinhibited subtype.

Predicted outcome of RAD children: Of the four patterns of attachment (secure, avoidant, resistant and disorganized), disorganized attachment in infancy and early childhood is recognized as a powerful predictor for serious psychopathology and maladjustment in children. Children with disorganized attachment are more vulnerable to stress, have problems with regulation and control of negative emotions, display oppositional, hostile, aggressive behaviors and coercive styles of interaction. Disorganized attachment is over-represented in groups of children with clinical problems and those who are victims of maltreatment (e.g., nearly 80% of maltreated infants have disorganized attachment).

What is Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)? Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is defined on the basis of developmentally inappropriate inattention, motor activity, and impulsivity that emerge early in development and cause impairment in social and academic functioning. Longitudinal research has shown that having a ‘loving’ primary caregiver and developing ‘organized and secure’ attachment to a primary caregiver act as a protective factor against social and emotional maladjustment for infants and children.