The influence of attachment and relational quality on developmental outcomes across the lifespan: a systematic review and meta-analytic insights (2014-2024).
Level 1 - systematic review of randomized trials
Systematic review and meta-analysis of developmental literature (graded by design analogy for observational/lifespan synthesis).
PubMed 41937813 · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1745013
What was done
Systematic review and domain-specific meta-analysis following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, synthesizing peer-reviewed articles published between 2014 and 2024 from PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Scopus. The review examined the relationship between attachment quality and developmental outcomes across the lifespan (prenatal stages to old age), combining quantitative meta-analysis where comparable with structured narrative synthesis.
What was found
The abstract reports qualitative narrative directions and contains no quantitative effect sizes, confidence intervals, or sample sizes. Reported directions indicate that prenatal maternal stress impacts fetal development; secure infant attachment promotes socio-emotional competence while insecure attachment increases psychopathology risk; middle-childhood peer and teacher support bolster wellbeing whereas bullying damages it; and adult attachment patterns shape romantic relationships, marriage, and parenting.
Why it matters
Synthesizes a decade of research showing that attachment and relationship quality act as continuous protective factors and developmental determinants across all human life stages.
Limits
The abstract does not disclose the total number of included studies, overall participant count, effect sizes, heterogeneity metrics, or risk of bias assessments. Much of the underlying lifespan developmental literature is observational, limiting causal attribution.
Cited by
- supports Close attachment relationships provide measurable physiological and health benefits, including better sleep and improved recovery.