The relationship of maternal and child HIV infection to security of attachment among Ugandan infants

This study was designed to examine the relationship of maternal and child human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection to the security of attachment of Ugandan infants. The attachment patterns of two groups of Ugandan mother-infant pairs: 35 HIV-positive mothers and their infants and 25 HIV-negative mothers and their infants were compared. We tested the hypothesis that infants of HIV-positive mothers would demonstrate less secure attachment as measured by the Waters Attachment Q-set than infants of HIV-negative mothers. No differences were found in the security of attachment of infants of HIV-positive versus HIV-negative mothers. Infants of HIV-positive mothers with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) were less securely attached than infants of mothers without AIDS. These findings underscore the relationship of infant security of attachment to maternal HIV infection in the presence of AIDS-related symptoms but not to asymptomatic maternal HIV infection.