Policy Brief: Laying a Foundation for Social & Emotional, Cognitive, and Academic Competence: Promoting Responsive, Secure Caregiving Relationships

This brief is a result of a CCFW Research to Real World Forum. When the primary attachment relationship is secure, children are more likely to have a range of positive outcomes, including empathy, curiosity, adaptive emotional regulation, social competence, on-time developmental milestones, and resilience to challenging situations, all of which influence and are reflected in the structure of the developing brain. When primary relationships are disturbed or disrupted, secondary attachment relationships with alternate caregivers can be therapeutic, protecting the young child from the adverse consequences of neglect, rejection, or insensitivity on the part of the primary caregiver.