Mother nature: Applicability to contemporary attachment styles

Abstract

Objectives Explore humanity's shifting attachment to the natural world using established attachment theories as a framework. Methods Investigate the analogy between human-nature connection and caregiver-child attachment styles. Draw on indigenous case studies, sociology and anthropology to highlight contemporary repercussions of this ‘detachment’. Results Factors such as rapid population growth and urbanisation have disrupted the secure attachment with nature, which is evidenced in ancient egalitarian societies. These factors can be mapped onto contemporary attachment domains. Conclusions There is an urgent need to re-establish a secure attachment to nature. This may be a pivotal strategy in addressing both mental health and environmental challenges, particularly in the context of the escalating climate crisis.