Attachment and Self-Understanding: Parenting with the Brain in Mind

This article is an adaptation of a chapter in a text edited by Marci Green and
published by Karnac and is based on the ideas explored in The Developing Mind: How relationships and the
brain interact to shape who we are (Guilford, 1999) and Parenting from the Inside Out: How a deeper selfunderstanding can help you raise children who thrive (with Mary Hartzell [2003]). It has been summarized in
part in the article, The Mind, the Brain, and Human Relationships (Gynaelcology Forum International, 2003) and
published online under the current title by Enneagram Monthly. KEY WORDS: attachment, neurobiology,
parenting, relationships, brain development. I