disorganized attachment

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An attachment style characterized by chaos, where a child can behave both activated and deactivated at the same time, like a combination of both anxious attachment and avoidant attachment. They will run toward and then away a parent, freeze up, or hit a parent for no clear reason.

It is often caused by a child seeing the parent as scary or dangerous, as they are confused why the person who is supposed to be caring for and protecting them is also a threat.

In adulthood this attachment style is called fearful-avoidant. It is characterized by not wanting to rely on other people, afraid of expressing their feelings, and emotional flare-ups.

See attachment theory.