Cognitive science has demonstrated that we construct knowledge about the world by abstracting patterns from routinely encountered experiences and storing them as semantic memories. This preregistered study tested the hypothesis that caregiving-related early adversities (crEAs) shape affective semantic memories to reflect the content of those…

In the current age of border talk, border enforcement, and of draconian policies that further separate and break up families, children who remain in the country of origin are rarely asked what they understand the border and the United States to be like. Media vehicles and academic papers have reported the brutal effects of family separation at the…

Separation anxiety symptoms are very common in children. The present study aims to examine the psychometric properties and the factorial structure of the Portuguese version of the Separation Anxiety Scale for Children (SASC). The participants included 874 children, 52% male, aged between 8 and 11 years (M = 9.50; SD = 1.15). Factor analysis…

More than 60 million children have been left behind in rural China by parents going to work in cities. Given the effects of child-parent separation (CPS) on development, this phenomenon has drawn considerable governmental and academic attention in recent years. Outlining developments with reference to relevant studies, this review characterizes…

There has been a record surge of unaccompanied immigrant minors (UAMs) entering the United States, with 86% of those apprehended at the US-Mexico border originating from the Central American countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. A majority of immigrant children are separated from either one or both parents at various points during the…

In this paper, we present findings from the filmed observations of 12 1-year-old toddlers in 10 different Norwegian childcare centres during separations and reunions with their mothers. Separations and reunions are sensitive situations, especially around the age of one, when separation anxiety normally peaks. The observations were conducted when…

Adult separation anxiety disorder (ASAD) is classified under anxiety disorders in "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (5th ed.; DSM-5). However, the reasons for ASAD are uncertain. The relationship between ASAD and childhood experiences is one of the frequently debated issues. The purpose of this study was to develop…

In toddlers, the transition from home to childcare might elicit high levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Measuring cortisol may give an indicator for children's experience and hence, may help improve this transition. We applied linear mixed model analyses to investigate the cortisol levels of 119 toddlers during their transition to childcare…

This study considered the effect of Triple P as a behavioural family intervention on mothers of children with separation anxiety disorder. Three hundred families with separation anxious children participated in this research which divided into intervention and control groups. The measuring tools were Parenting Scale, Depression Anxiety Stress…

Although many immigrant children to the United States arrive with their parents, a notable proportion are first separated and later reunited with their parents. How do the experiences of separation and reunification shape the well-being of immigrant children? Data were from a national survey of legal adult immigrants and their families, the New…

A transitional object is the selection and binding to an object that reminds the child of the mother and helps deal with separation anxiety in situations where the child is separated from the mother. In reality, many children are observed to have transitional objects and no problems occur. In this case report, the transitional object became…

Military deployments can necessitate prolonged family separations. The strain of separation is particularly acute for very young children and their parents. Reunions bring joy as well as challenges. The authors draw from their work with military families with young children to explore experiences of separating and reconnecting and the supports…

Little is known about the origins of anxiety manifested in the career counseling process. Through a case illustration, this article highlights the appropriateness of using functional family therapy (FFT) principles in career counseling sessions to assess the family dynamics involved in this issue. The discussion emphasizes seven suggestions: (1)…

Infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH) practitioners working with infants and young children and their caregivers who are impacted by the trauma of separation, loss, and unpredictable reunification require access to reflective supervision/consultation (RS/C) to mitigate vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue, and to ensure thoughtful…

The present study applied state-space grid analysis to describe how preschooler-mother dyads co-regulate emotion in the Strange Situation. Second-to-second mother and child affect during pre-separation play (baseline) and the final reunion (post perturbation) episodes of the Strange Situation were coded for 80 dyads. Change in emotion…