Attachment security and striatal functional connectivity in typically developing children. (April 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Choi, Eun Jung; Taylor, Margot J.; Vandewouw, Marlee M.; Hong, Soon-Beom; Kim, Chang-dai; Yi, Soon-Hyung
• Is Part Of: Developmental cognitive neuroscience. Volume 48(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-04
• Subjects: Attachment security -- Striatal connectivity -- Resting-state fMRI -- Children; Cognitive neuroscience -- Periodicals; Developmental neurobiology -- Periodicals; Neuropsychology -- Periodicals; Neuropsychiatry -- Periodicals; 612.8233
• DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.100914
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1878-9293

Abstract

Abstract: Attachment security is formed through interactions with a main caregiver during the first three years of life and reflects inter-individual differences in mental representations for the relationship. The striatum is known to be a key structure to initiate attachment behaviours and maintain attachment relationships as well as to modulate reward-related processing as part of the approach module in current neurobiological models of human attachment. Although findings have suggested critical roles of the striatum in inter-individual differences in attachment, most studies were based on a wide variety of tasks and very few have investigated these associations in intrinsic brain connectivity in typically developing children. In the present study, using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, we examined the striatal functional connectivity according to children's attachment security in 68 nine-year-olds (Secure attachment = 39, Insecure attachment = 29, mean age/SD = 9.62/0.69). Children with secure attachment demonstrated increased functional connectivity in the tempro-limbic region, compared to children with insecure attachment. In addition, the child-reported attachment security scores were negatively associated with the caudate-prefrontal connectivity, but positively with the putamen-visual area connectivity. These data demonstrate that inter-individual differences in attachment can be captured in striatal functional connectivity organization in the typical brain.