Although Meyer and Freud believed that the seeds of mental health are
sown in childhood, systematic research has proved difficult and
disappointing, and theory has remained intensely controversial. Research of
the past two decades by developmental psychologists using an ethologically
based theory of socioemotional bonds, however, is yielding findings that
consistently confirm predictions. The author outlines this research, giving
examples of the results, which are shown to be compatible with findings of
epidemiological studies of depressed adults. He holds that a person's
degree of vulnerability to stressors is strongly influenced by the
development and current state of his or her intimate relationships.
Abstract Teaser