Resident and Counselor Relationships in a Court-Affiliated Residential Treatment Setting for Adolescents: Role of Attachment

Abstract

The current study examined if and to what extent adolescents in a residential treatment facility might use their focal counselor as a secure base and how counselors' attachment security plays a role in whether and to what extent secure base behavior is present. Three counselors and eight residents participated in the mixed-methods study. Findings indicated that counselors' own attachment security was related to whether residents used them as a resource, or “secure base,” during times of need.

Keywords:

• attachment
• client–counselor relationship
• incarcerated adolescents
• residential treatment