Was there one person in your childhood who you knew you could go to when you were in distress? You knew they would listen and allow you to have your feelings, providing comfort and support. This person represented a "secure base" in a world that may have been chaotic, confusing, and scary.

It turns out that having a "secure base" during your childhood makes all the difference in how you love, trust and engage in relationships.

Kevin and Niseema welcome Drs. Howard and Miriam Steele, to discuss their book, Handbook of Attachment-Based Interventions. They have made it their life's work to study the benefits of having a secure base, and what happens when there isn't one. They have studied and developed effective ways to support parents learning the skills of being a secure base for their children, and in the process learn what it means to be a humble caretaker.

Stay tuned for Part II next week, when the Steele's will talk about the ramifications of a world where striving for independence has eroded the human need for "interdependence and community."

Howard Steele, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology and former chair for Clinical Psychology at the New School for Social Research in New York City. At the New School, Dr. Steele co-directs (with Dr. M. Steele) the Center for Attachment Research. Dr. Howard Steele is also the founder and senior editor of the international scientific peer-reviewed journal Attachment and Human Development. Howard is the founder and first president of the learned society, Society for Emotion and Attachment Studies, www.seasinternational.org.

Miriam Steele, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology, at the New School for Social Research where she co-directs (with Dr. H. Steele) the Center for Attachment Research. Dr. Miriam Steele is also an Anna Freud Center trained psychoanalyst. Miriam initiated the London Parent-Child Project, a major longitudinal study of inter-generational patterns of attachment, and has also carried out longitudinal attachment research in the context of child maltreatment and adoption.