Caregivers' mind-mindedness and rural left-behind young children's insecure attachment: The moderated mediation model of theory of mind and family status

Background China's rapid development and urbanization since the early 1980s have compelled many rural residents to move from rural to urban areas for work, leaving thousands of children at home. Objective This study tested the mediating effect of children's theory of mind on the relationship between caregivers' mind-mindedness and their children's insecure attachment differently depending on the different family status (the moderator) of left-behind and non-left-behind. Participants The participants were 3 to 6 years old 74 left-behind children (LBHC) and 89 non-left-behind children (NLBHC). Settings Participants were from rural counties of central China in Henan province that has experienced a large labor migration. Methods A cross-sectional moderated mediation model linked mind-mindedness (independent variable) and insecure attachment (dependent variable) through the theory of mind (mediator) and family status (moderator: left-behind/non-left-behind), controlling for age, gender, and siblings. Results First, LBHC scored higher on insecure-disorganized attachment than NLBHC. Second, the early childhood theory of mind mediated the relationship between the caregiver's mind-mindedness and young children's insecure attachment. Third, family status moderated the effects of the theory of mind on insecure attachment. The mediating role was established only for the left-behind family, and the lower theory of mind ability was associated with the greater insecure attachment of LBHC. Conclusions Our findings highlight the critical role of mind-mindedness, theory of mind, and family status in the attachment theory and clarify the association between different levels of young children's theory of mind and insecure attachment based on family status.