Circle of Security
"COS is theoretically grounded, evidence-based, and uniquely understandable and appealing to parents. It is rare to find such a sophisticated clinical model with such wide applicability. I would urge all parent education programs to add the Circle of Security concepts to their tool kit." - Linda Gilkerson, Ph.D.
Circle of Security is designated as a ‘Reported Effective Program’ by The Children’s Bureau’s Office on Child Abuse and Neglect of the US Department of Health and Human Services in its Emerging Practices in the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect project.
This project was initiated to identify effective and innovative programmes in child abuse and neglect-prevention around USA. Using edited videotapes of their interactions with their children, this 20-week, group-based, parent educational and psychotherapeutic intervention is designed to shift patterns of caregiving interactions in high-risk, caregiver-child dyads (pairs) to a more appropriate developmental pathway.
Summary of findings to date
Preliminary evaluation findings have been positive (Marvin, Cooper; Hoffman & Powell, 2002) suggesting that Circle of Security may have:
- Increased ordered child and caregiver strategies (ordered strategies include secure, ambivalent, and avoidant, as opposed to disorganised and insecure-other).
- Increased secure caregiver strategies.
- Increased secure child attachment.
- Increased caregiver affection, sensitivity, delight, and support for exploration.
- Decreased caregiver rejection, neglect, flat affect, and role reversal.
