Attachment - knowledge gaps

Question 1

define the term reciprocity (2)

Answer 1

• describes the interaction between mother and infant as a two way process
• mother and imfant respond to eachother and elicit a response from eachother

Question 2

define the term interactional synchrony (1)

Answer 2

• mother and infant interact in a way that their actions mirror one another

Question 3

who conducted research into recirpocity and interactional synchrony ? (1)

Answer 3

Meltzoff and Moore

Question 4

describe the procedure and findings of Meltzoff and Moore (3)

Answer 4

procedure:
- mother displayed 1 of 3 gestures or facial expression
- response of baby filmed from diff angles

findings
- association between expression/ gestures displayed and response of child

Question 5

what is meant by the term alert phase ? (2)

Answer 5

• babies signal to mother they want to interact
• mothers pick up on and repond to this 2/3 of time

Question 6

who conducted research into the importance of interactional synchrony ? (1)

Answer 6

isabella

Question 7

describe the procedure and findings of the research done by isabella (3)

Answer 7

porcedure:
- observed 20 mothers
- assesed degree of interactional synchyrony and quality of mother infant attachment

findings:
- higher lvls of interactional synchrony associated with better quality mother infant attachment

Question 8

give a limitation of the caregiver interaction theory (1)

Answer 8

low usefulness

provides details about interactional synchrony and reciprocity themselves but no explanation on why this happense

Question 9

who conducted research on and came up with the stages of attachment ? (1)

Answer 9

Shauffer and Emerson

Question 9

describe the procedure and findings of the research done by Shauffer and Emerson (7)

Answer 9

procedure:
- 60 babies (31 male, 29 female)
- from working class families in Glasgow
- longitudinal study
- infants and mothers visited at home every month for a year and again at 18 months
- researcher asked mother about kind of protest infant showed when they were absent from infant (seperation anxiety) and in the presence of a stranger (stranger anxiety)

Findings
- 50% babies showed separation anxiety towards mother between 25 and 32 weeks of age

• By age 40 weeks – 80% had specific attachments and 30% displayed multiple attachments

Question 10

what are the 4 stages of attachment ? (4)

Answer 10

1. Asocial stage
2. indiscriminate stage
3. specific attachment stage
4. multiple attachments stage

Question 11

describe the indiscriminate attachment stage (5)

Answer 11

• 2 months to 7months
• more social behavior displayed
• prefer humans to inanimate objects
• start to show preference for familiar adults
• dont experience stranger or seperation anxiety

Question 12

describe the specific attachment stage (3)

Answer 12

• 7 months to 1 year
• formed a sepcific attachment (to primary CG)
• stranger and seperation anxiety experienced

Question 13

describe the multiple attachment stage (2)

Answer 13

• 1yr onwards
• extend attachment to mutiple adults

Question 14

give 2 strengths if the stages of attachment (2)

Answer 14

1. high validity - natural env + babies dk they are being observed
2. longitudinal study - any anomalies unlikely to last this long

Question 15

give limitations 2 (there are 3 availible) of the stages of attachment

Answer 15

1. sample - small, all from glasgow, all from working class families
2. relies on self report methods - mothers may lie, forget, social desiribility bias, dont pick up on trivial details
3. stages are reductionist - breaks down attachment into seperation and stranger anxiety only - no other factors considered

Question 16

who conducted research or has gathered findings into the role of the father as a secondary caregiver/ attachment figure ? (2)

Answer 16

• Grossman
• shauffer and emerson

Question 17

who conducted research into the role of the father as a primary caregiver ? (1)

Answer 17

Field

Question 18

describe the findings and conclusion of Grossman (2)

Answer 18

Findings:
- quality of play of fathers associated to quality of attachment in adolesence

Conclusion:
- fathers and mothers roles are equally as important but mother has role centred around nurtur whereas father has role centresed around play

Question 19

give a strength of the role of the father

Answer 19

NATURE NURTURE DEBATE PROVIDES VALID EVIDENCE FOR WHY FATHERS DON’T USUALLY BECOME PRIMARY CG’S

In terms of nature: women have oestrogen - makes then more nurturing so they are biologically predisposed *to being primary CG

in terms of nurture: we grow up in an env of traditional gender roles where women are expected to be more nurturing and caring than men

Question 19

what did shauffer and emerosn find on the role of the father (2) as a secondary caregiver ?

Answer 19

• majority of babies attach to mother first
• by age 18months 75% of infant’s attachment to father shown

Question 20

describe the procedure, findings and concluison of Field’s research (3)

Answer 20

procedure:
- Observed and compared primary caregiver fathers, primary caregiver mother and secondary caregiver fathers

findings:
- primary caregiver fathers like mothers, spend more time smiling, imitating and holding hands

conclusions:
- Key to primary attachment figure is level of responsiveness not gender of parent

Question 21

give a limitation of the role of the father as a secondary caregiver

Answer 21

importance if role of father as secondary attachment figure (as proposed by Grossman) questioned

children growing up in single sex or single parent homes dont develop diff to those who have both parents each diff genders