Journal of Child and Adolescent Behavior
Open Access

Review Article

Attachment Theory in Clinical Work with Adolescents

¹Department of psychology, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, Canada

²Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Canada

³Department of psychology, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Canada

⁴Department of social psychology, McGill University, Montréal, Canada

*Corresponding Author:

Karine Dubois-Comtois
Department of psychology
Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada
E-mail: karine.dubois-comtois@uqtr.ca

Received Date: August 28, 2013 Accepted Date: October 15, 2013 Published Date: October 25, 2013

Citation: Dubois-Comtois K, Cyr C, Pascuzzo K, Lessard M (2013) Attachment Theory in Clinical Work with Adolescents. J Child Adolesc Behav 1:111. doi:10.4172/2375-4494.1000111

Copyright: © 2013 Dubois-Comtois K, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Adolescence is a critical period of transformation that can result in the emergence or consolidation of psychopathology. Attachment theory offers a framework for understanding adolescent normative and pathological functioning as well as relevant intervention models that promote the emergence of individual and interpersonal abilities. This article provides a framework for clinicians interested in the therapeutic application of attachment theory with adolescents. It addresses the salient aspects of attachment during the adolescence period and its impact on adolescents’ adaptation and difficulties. The article also provides a brief description of the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI), a method of choice to assess adolescent attachment state of mind. Finally, the clinical application of attachment theory with adolescents is described and supported with clinical vignettes.