A developmental psychopathology approach to anxious-depressed symptoms emphasizes the dynamic, transactional process between one's current circumstances and his/her history of adaptations (Bowlby, 1969/1982; Cicchetti, 1984, 1989; Hammen, 1992; Sameroff, 2000; Sroufe et al., 2005). Accordingly, poor quality early caregiving experiences may launch individuals toward elevated symptoms later in life, but their adaptation to subsequent developmental issues may either accentuate or compensate for this early risk (O'Connor, 2003; Rutter & Sroufe, 2000). Prior adaptations to developmentally salient issues are not “erased from the tape” (Kagan, 1980, p. 240), but instead are incorporated into the self system as new developmental issues are negotiated while others wane in significance (Erikson, 1963).
