<P> Secure attachment is classified by children who show some distress when their caregiver leaves but are able to compose themselves knowing that their caregiver will return . Children with secure attachment feel protected by their caregivers, and they know that they can depend on them to return . John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth developed a theory known as attachment theory after inadvertently studying children who were patients in a hospital at which they were working . Attachment theory explains how the parent - child relationship emerges and provides influence on subsequent behaviors and relationships . Stemming from this theory, there are four main types of attachment: secure attachment, ambivalent attachment, avoidant attachment and disoriented attachment . </P> <P> Ambivalent attachment is defined by children who become very distressed when their caregiver leaves, and they are not able to soothe or compose themselves . These children cannot depend on their caregiver (s) to be there for them . This is a relatively infrequent case with only a small percentage of children in the United States affected . Avoidant attachment is represented by children who avoid their caregiver, showing no distress when the caregiver leaves . These children react similarly to a stranger as do they with their caregiver . This attachment is often associated with abusive situations . Children who are reprimanded for going to their caregiver will stop seeking help in the future . Disoriented attachment is defined by children who have no consistent way to manage their separation from and reunion with the attachment figure . Sometimes these children appear to be clinically depressed . These children are often present in studies of high - risk samples of severely maltreated babies, but they also appear in other samples . </P> <P> Children who have a secure attachment to their primary caregiver will grow to have higher self - esteem as well as better self - reliance . Additionally, these children tend to be more independent and have lower reported instances of anxiety and depression . These children are also able to form better social relationships . </P> <P> Children who are securely attached typically are visibly upset as their caregivers leave, but they are happy upon their return . These children seek comfort from their parent or caregiver when frightened . In an instance when their parent or primary caregiver is not available, these children can be comforted to a degree by others, but they prefer their familiar parent or caregiver . Likewise, when parents with secure attachments reach out to their children, the children welcome the connection . Playing with children is more common when parents and children have a secure attachment . These parents react more quickly to their children's needs and are typically more responsive to a child they are securely attached to than one of insecure attachment . Attachment carries on throughout the growth of the children . Studies support that secure attachments with primary caregivers lead to more mature and less aggressive children than those with avoidant or ambivalent attachment styles . </P>

Which of the following is a sign of a secure attachment between a child and his or her career