The first aim of this study was to examine developmental changes in the quality of girls' attachment to their primary caregiver during adolescence, and to examine baseline predictors of changes in attachment from sociodemographic, parenting, and parent psychopathology factors. The second aim of this study was to examine relations between changes in the quality of girls' attachment to their caregiver and concurrent changes in psychopathology symptoms and social dysfunction during adolescence. There was a significant linear decline in quality of girls' attachment to their primary caregiver from ages 11 to 16. Parenting practices predicted decreases in attachment security, even after controlling for sociodemographic risk factors and parental psychopathology. Lack of secure attachment to caregivers at age 11 and decreases in attachment security from ages 11 to 16 were related to increases in psychopathology symptoms and social dysfunction during the same time period
