Discussion
1) RF was significantly correlated with both adult attachment representations and maternal sensitivity. Fonagy’s finding that RF was strongly related with infant security was not replicated.
2) RF’s relation with infant security was heavily mediated by maternal sensitivity, supporting Fonagy’s hypothesis that RF is an important mechanism by which attachment transmission occurs.
3) A path analysis suggests that, unlike RF, adult attachment representations appear to influence infant security through behavioral mediators other than maternal sensitivity or by altering RF.