Circle of security

Attachment theorists say bonding is critical in child development, writes BENEDICT CAREY 

CHILDREN aren't the only ones showing off at the playground. Parents are on display too: There are the playful moms and dads, swinging on the monkey bars; the bookworms and cell phone gossips, their minds elsewhere; the anxiety-prone, shadowing their child's every step as if it could be the last; and those who continually bark instructions (“William, now what do we call that? William, what do we say to that boy? William!”).