Abstract:

It is known that in child development, father, mother and child interactions are important. Therefore the present study was organized based on attachment theory and hope theory. It is thought that children who have trustworthy relations by their parents based on closeness have a safe environment to develop hopeful thinking skills. Based on this assumption, the present study aimed to define the predictive role of attachment to mother pattern, attachment to father pattern and gender on hope. The research study group consisted of 380 children (173 girls; 207 boys) who attend to 4th, 5th and 6th grades at elemmentary and  primary schools in İzmir. In the study, Kerns Security Scale, Children’s Hope Scale and Personal Information Form were used to collect data. In data analysis, Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient and multiple regression analysis were used.  According to the results, children’s hope level was significantly predicted by their secure attachment to their mothers and fathers. Gender variable was not included in the regression analysis due to its insignificant relationship with the hope variable. The findings are discussed within the light of earlier studies and suggestions are provided for both the future studies and the practice.

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