Attachment Flashcards
What is reciprocity?
Where a mother will respond to infant alertness
(Like a conversation)
When does reciprocity begin?
From 3 months close attention between mother and infant
What is interactional synchrony?
Interactions become co-ordinated
(In sync)
What did Isabella et al say about interactional synchrony?
That the quality of attachment is related to synchrony
Disadvantage of caregiver infant interactions
Hard to know what is happening by observing simple gestures
What did Feldman say about purpose of caregiver interactions?
Just observations, the purpose is not entirely understood yet
Advantage of caregiver infant interaction experiments?
Highly controlled- capture fine detail of interaction
What did Grossman do research into?
The role of the father
What did Grossman find?
Attachment to fathers less important
Fathers play a different role (play and stimulation)
What did Feild say?
Fathers as primary caregivers adopt attachment behaviour more typical of mothers
Disadvantage of research into attachment figures
Inconsistent findings- overall picture unclear
Why are fathers not usually primary caregivers?
May be due to traditional roles or even biological differences
What would suggest fathers are not important?
Children without fathers are not different
What did Schaffer and Emerson study?
Stages of attachment
What were Schaffer and Emersons aims?
Investigate the age of attachment formation and who attachments are formed with
What was Schaffer and Emersons method?
Mothers of 60 babies reported monthly on separation anxiety
What did Schaffer and Emerson find?
Most babies showed attachment to a primary caregiver by 32 weeks and developed multiple attachments soon after this.
Advantage of Schaffer and Emersons study?
Good external validity- observations in PPS natural environment
Disadvantage of Schaffer and Emersons study?
Limited sample characteristics
All families from Glasgow- and over 50 yrs ago
So may lack generalisability
Why was the longitudinal design an advantage for Schaffer and Emerson’s?
Same PPS observed at each age, eliminating individual differences as a cofound.
What were the 4 stages of attachment identified by Schaffer and Emerson?
Asocial stage
Indiscriminate attachment
Specific attachments
Multiple attachments
What was observed in the asocial stage?
Little observable social behaviour
What was observed in the indiscriminate attachment stage?
More observable attachment behaviour, accept cuddles from any adult
What was observed at the specific attachment stage?
Stranger anxiety and separation anxiety in regard to one particular adult