AUTHOR=Saunders Hannah , Kraus Allyson , Barone Lavinia , Biringen Zeynep 

TITLE=Emotional availability: theory, research, and intervention

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=6

YEAR=2015

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01069

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01069

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=<p>Attachment theory (<xref ref-type="bibr" rid="B15">Bowlby, 1969</xref>) and its limitations are first described. Next, emotional availability (EA; <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="B13">Biringen et al., 1998</xref>; <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="B8">Biringen, 2008</xref>) is introduced as an expansion upon the original conceptualization of the parent–child attachment relationship. As a construct and as a measure, EA considers the dyadic and emotional qualities of adult–child relationships. EA is predictive of a variety of child outcomes, such as attachment security, emotion regulation, and school readiness. Recently developed programs to enhance adult–child EA are described.</p>