1. in the Strange Situation, the positive parent–child relationship, in which the child displays confidence when the parent is present, shows mild distress when the parent leaves, and quickly reestablishes contact when the parent returns. Compare insecure attachment. 2. an adult attachment style that combines a positive internal working model of attachment of oneself, characterized by a view of oneself as worthy of love, and a positive internal working model of attachment of others, characterized by the view that others are generally accepting and responsive. Compare dismissive attachment; fearful attachment; preoccupied attachment.
a reasoning process that requires language and thus represents the merging of language and thought. Children first use language to guide thought by speaking out loud; only later does speech go underground to become covert verbal thought. See egocentric speech; inner language. [proposed by Lev Vygotsky]