Attachment bonds: another view for another culture. A preliminary study with lebanese children

Abstract

This article considers the validity of applying attachment theories and tools, developed in American and European contexts, for the assessment of the quality of attachment in different cultures, such as that of the Middle East. Attachment categories were investigated in a sample of Lebanese children (N = 410) whose mother tongue is Arabic, using the Cartes: Modèles Individuels de Relation (CaMir). A principal component analysis performed on the 37 items used in a short version of the CaMir made it possible to extract four main categories of attachment that are comparable to those developed by the theory of attachment. However, a cultural influence was found in the expression of these attachment categories. This article discusses the relationship between attachment and the mode of social interaction characterized by relational connectivity.