Which statement is NOT a characteristic of Reactive Attachment Disorder as described in the material?

• A. Excessively strong, early attachment to strangers
• B. No emotions
• C. Eating without interest
• D. Caused by negligent care and lack of a primary caregiver

Answer: (A)

In Reactive Attachment Disorder, the child’s pattern is marked by withdrawal and difficulty forming or maintaining healthy attachments with caregivers, stemming from severe neglect or inconsistency in caregiving. The idea is that attachment to caregivers is not strong or early and indiscriminate toward strangers; rather, children with RAD show emotional withdrawal or fearfulness around adults and have trouble seeking or receiving comfort from caregivers.

So the statement about an excessively strong, early attachment to strangers does not fit RAD. That pattern actually points away from RAD and toward a different attachment issue, where a child may become overly familiar with strangers. The other possibilities can occur in the context of neglect: limited or flat affect (no emotions) can be part of emotional numbness, feeding problems can arise from ongoing neglect, and neglect with lack of a stable primary caregiver is a known etiological factor in RAD.