Preschool Assessment of Attachment (PAA): Introduction for low-risk and mild clinical conditions 2026 – Australia & online

Description: This course is in the lifespan series of assessments of attachment developed by Patricia M. Crittenden, PhD. The PAA course teaches children’s self-protective strategies with specific caregivers. It uses the classic Ainsworth Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) upon which all assessments of attachment are based. By applying the SSP to 2-5-year-old children the Preschool Assessment of Attachment (PAA) reveals important advances in children’s self-protective behavior. This is particularly relevant for endangered children or those with behavioral problems. The PAA marks the beginning of DMM theory and assessment as an expansion of Ainsworth’s work with infants.

Benefits to clinicians of taking the PAA course:

• Provide clarity regarding children’s adaptation and parents’ contribution
• Create compassion for both children and their parents
• Suggest effective therapist-parent strategies to use in treatment
• Jumpstart the treatment or restart a stalled treatment
• Enable therapists to find the parents’ ZPD regarding their child
• Enable therapists to guide parents to discover children’s perspectives and self-protective strategies
• Permit reliable coders to classify the protective strategies used by children

Note: Coding reliability and earning a coding certificate usually require more effort than this course.

Instructors: Rebecca Carr-Hopkins, DipSW MSc, (via Zoom from UK) with Bronwen Elliott, B.SocStuds (Hons) M.P.P., facilitating (for participants in Australasian/Asian time zones).

Prerequisites: Participants must have already taken Attachment, Neurodevelopment, & Psychopathology or have organized to take it concurrently.

Language: English

Where: Virtual by Zoom. Optional residential component for the first three days (May 18-20) within 2 hours of Sydney. Residential participation is encouraged to promote connections with other participants. Further details will be provided in January 2026.

Dates: May 18-20 & 26-28, & June 22-24 & 29-July 1, 2026. 

Time: 3pm-7pm AEST (6am-10am BST) plus a daily tutorial with your facilitator. This will be 1.30pm-3pm AEST, or as arranged for your time zone.

Assignments: There is (a) coding work during the teaching weeks and (b) between the sessions, with the option of a tutorial with your facilitator to discuss, and (c) a requirement to submit 3 PAAs carried out by the course participant. This work must be completed to receive a Certificate for Administering the PAA. There is a reliability test for normative samples following the course.

Cost: $1900 AUD (£950 GBP) if paid before December 31, 2025; $2300 AUD (£1150 GBP) beginning January 1, 2026. Payment is not transferable or refundable (unless the course is cancelled).

Registration: Contact Rebecca Carr-Hopkins at rebecca@iswmatters.co.uk

Cancellation: The course may be cancelled or changed to an online training only if fewer than 10 people register to attend in person in Sydney by December 31.