Family

Question 1

Explain caregiver-child attachment

Answer 1

> strong and enduring attachment as this is the first meaningful attachment that the infant has

Theories that support this view
Attachment theory: The first relationship shapes the rest in their life
Ethological theory: This relationship is vital for the infant’s survival and security
Psychodynamic theory: This relationship provides a model for the child to build on future relationships, and inform what are the responsibilities and roles are within a relationship.

Short-term importance:
survival
security
emotion regulation

Long-term importance
A working model for future relationships
Shaping further relationships

Question 2

Describe the stages of caregiver-child attachment and which approach does this framework belongs to

Answer 2

Ethological approach
Indiscriminate sociability (0-2 months)
> Infant: show sociability to everyone
> Caregiver: constantly picking up the responses, comforts

Attachment in the making (2-7 months)
> Infant: preference to familiar people
> Parents: keep picking up the signals to build trust

Clear-cut Attachment (7-24 months)
> Infant: Actively seeking for the caregiver
> Caregiver: Provide security as a base for infant’s further exploration

Reciprocal Attachement (24+)
> Infant: Understanding to caregivers’ emotions
> Parents: Working to build a mutual relationship

Question 3

Four attachment patterns

Answer 3

Secure attachment:
> upset when the caregiver is gone, easy to be comforted
> show mistrust to strangers + trust to the caregiver that this abandonment is temporal

Anxious-resistant:
> Upset when the caregiver is gone. Although wants comfort, hard to be comforted.
> hard to find comfort from the caregiver + does not believe the abandonment is temporal

Anxious-Avoidant:
> Does not get upset when the caregiver is gone, easily comforted by the stranger.
> Does not understand potential dangers + does not find the caregiver important

Disorganised:
> complex and inconsistent reaction
> shows that maybe family is not in unison.

Question 4

Factors that lead to attachment patterns and consequence of attachment patterns

Answer 4

childcare > pattern (ns)
income-to-need ratio > pattern (significant)
Maternal sensitivity > pattern (significant)
Childcare can counter the negative patterns caused by low income and maternal sensitivity

childhood: level of cooperation within the family
adolescence: level of willingness and resistance of looking for teachers’ help
Adulthood: Affecting the attachment pattern that their child would inherit

Question 5

What did Stern’s experiment depict

Answer 5

Attachment pattern that the mother receives shows stability to the attachment pattern that their infant has (prototype model)

Question 6

Explain Siblings Rivalry and conflict

Answer 6

Normal
Frequent
Happens earliest when the young sibling appears
can be important for learning social skills (e.g., conflict resolution, peer maintenance)

Problematic if
no resolution
parents in marital conflict
parents are not involved
older sibling is anti-social (as the younger sibling will learn)

Question 7

Explain sibling coalition

Answer 7

Older can help with
socio-cognitive skills of the younger sibling
offering protection and help
teaching

young can help with
imitating older sibling
offer trust and respect

both can help with
prosocial skills
dealing with parents and other children

Question 8

Explain bioecological approach

Answer 8

children experience are not universal, but culturally sanction (systemic)
microsystem (child and the people around him)
mesosystem (the relationship between the people around the child)
exosystem (the child himself does not have to interact in-person): school, media, neighbours
macrosystem: law, sociocultural values
chronosystem: changes over time)