Attachment and Substance Abuse Parental attachment, defined as a persistent emotional bond and involved interaction between parent and child, has not been critically studied with respect to the development of child-related disorders. substance use (SUD) ( Zhai, Kirisci, Tarter, & Ridenour, 2014). A probable reason for this is the consideration that attachment is generally established by two years of age and the manifestation of SUDs often appears almost two decades later (Zhai et al., 2014). Therefore, long-term documentation is needed to monitor the influence of parent-child bonding on SUDs and their etiology (Lander, Howsare, & Byrne, 2013). Additionally, several factors occur during the developmental period that impact the quality of the parent-child relationship, including fluctuating life circumstances of the parent (e.g., divorce, job loss, medical illness, psychiatric disorders) and the child. (e.g. school, friendships) (Zhai et al., 2014; Lander et al. 2013). According to Thorberg et al. (2011), up to fifty percent of individuals with alcohol use disorders (AUD) also have alexithymia, a personality construct hypothesized to be related to attachment difficulties. Research on alexithymia finds significant positive associations between alexithymia, difficulty identifying feelings (DIF), difficulty describing feelings (DDF), and alcohol use problems (Thorberg et al., 2011). Individuals with alcohol dependence and alexithymia report a higher incidence of suicidal ideation, longer periods of alcohol abuse, and more complications with alcohol than those with alcohol-only dependence (Thorberg et al., 2011). According to Fowler, Groat, and Ulanday (2013), the current findings suggest that the anxious concerns…at the heart of the paper…come from substance abuse treatment services. (2006) DASIS Series: S‐30, DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 06‐4139, Rockville, MD.Thorberg, Arne, Young, Ross, Sullivan, Karen A., Lyvers, Michael, Connor, Jason P., & Feeney, Gerald FX (2011). Alexithymia, craving and attachment in a heavy drinking population. Addictive Behaviors, 36(4), 427-430. Wedekind, D., Bandelow, B., Heitmann, S., Havemann-Reinecke, U., Engel, R. K. & Huether, G. (2013). Attachment style, anxiety management and personality styles in hospitalized patients with alcohol dependence in withdrawal. Substance Abuse Treatment Prevention Policy, 8(1),Zhai, W.Z., Kirisci, L., Tarter, E.R., & Ridenour, A.T. (2014). Psychological dysregulation during adolescence mediates the association between parent-child attachment in childhood and substance use disorder in adulthood. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 40(1), 67-74.