Abstract
Little is known about attachment security and disorganization in children who are at genetic risk for an ASD prior to a possible diagnosis. The present study examined distributions of attachment security and disorganization at 15-months of age in a sample of younger siblings of older children with (ASD-sibs;
n
= 50) or without (COMP-sibs;
n
= 31) an ASD. ASD-sibs were not more or less likely to evince attachment insecurity or disorganization than COMP-sibs. ASD-sibs, however, were over-represented in the B1-B2 secure attachment subgroup whereas COMP-sibs were over-represented in the B3-B4 secure attachment subgroup. Results suggest that ASD-sibs are able to form secure affectional bonds with their caregivers, but may differ from COMP-sibs in their expression of that security.
