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Attachment Theory Case Study Examples

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Introduction
Modern attachment theory and self-psychology are important theories to consider when working with clients in a therapeutic environment. In the following sections “Ann” will be introduced and her situation will be examined in terms of modern attachment theory and self-psychology. Elements of trauma, disorganized attachment, neurobiology, and Kohutian framework will in discussed in relation to Ann’s symptomology, mental health diagnoses and current situation.
The Client Ann is a 28 year old, Caucasian female. She has a long history of trauma and mental illness. Ann has been diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Dissociative Identity Disorder, Bi-Polar Depression, Anxiety and Panic Disorder. She is currently living …show more content…

Attachment theory was introduced by John Bowlby and explains that the behavior and survival functions adults have were shaped by relationships with caregivers early in life (Schore & Schore, 2012). Modern attachment theory takes Bowlby’s attachment theory and includes contemporary knowledge of neurobiology. This knowledge incorporates stress, body based affective processes, interactive regulation and early experience dependent brain maturation to emphasize how attachment and developmental experiences affect the right brain (Schore & Schore, 2012). Ann’s father was not in the picture for her to form an attachment with, and her mother sexually abused her. Trauma Ann experienced from her caregivers as a child is thought to have led to the development of a disorganized attachment style that resulted in neurological changes in her …show more content…

When trauma is experienced from the care giver, the child has no one to go to for safety and, as a result, does not develop adaptive coping strategies (Badenoch, 2008). This can have detrimental effects on emotional regulation and interpersonal abilities (Charuvastra & Cloitre, 2008). Since Ann’s primary abuser was her mother, and the abuse was so severe, Ann would have formed a disorganized attachment with her mother as a child. Given the severity and long term nature of the abuse, this undoubtedly contributed her pathological symptoms later in

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