Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents -- Abbreviations -- Abstract -- Keywords -- Introduction -- 1 Attachment Theory and Its Application to Historical Material -- 2 Case Studies from Medieval England -- Conclusions -- Bibliography.

This book brings together the disciplines of history and psychology. It is the first study to apply attachment theory to self-narratives of the past, namely examples of life-writing (letters and proto-autobiographies) from medieval England, written in broad religious contexts. It examines whether God could appear as an adequate attachment figure in times of high mortality and often inadequate childrearing practices, and whether the emphasis on God's proximity to believers benefited their psychological reorganisation. The main method of enquiry is discourse analysis based on the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) coding.

Description based on print version record.