attachment Flashcards
(22 cards)
CAREGIVER INFANT INTERACTIONS
Ao1
Attachment = close two way bond
Human babies born at early age, need to attach as cannot look after themselves
TWO INTERACTIONS:
- reciprocity
respond to each other signals, e.g. silly noise, smile.
Alert phases equal ready to interact, mothers respond around 2/3 of time
Brazelton said important for later communication, described as “dance “ - international synchrony
Perform same actions in unison
“Temporal coordination of microlevel social behaviour “ (Feldman)
Meltzoff and Moore
Looked at infant ability for interactional synchrony (young as two weeks). Adult = one of three facial expressions.
Findings: age 2 to 3 weeks able to mirror gestures and expressions
CAREGIVER INFANT INTERACTIONS
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Controlled observations capture find detail (observations of interactions in laboratory conditions, enter rate to reliability)
– Practical value: improvement in interactional synchrony could benefit relationship, 10 minute parent child interaction therapy (PCIT) helped.
LIMITATIONS
– How to know whats happening when observing infants: lack coordination skills, unplanned movements.
– Socially sensitive, focuses on influence of mother on quality of attachment
STAGES OF ATTACHMENT
Ao1
Schaffer and Emerson longitudinal study
PROCEDURE
– 60 Glaswegian infants, 5–23 weeks old
– researchers visited for first 18 months.
– studied in own home with carers
– mothers kept diary of infant response to separation, and strange anxiety.
FINDINGS
1: asocial, first few weeks, humans + objects
2: indiscriminate, 2–7 months, recognise familiar but except comfort from anyone, no anxiety
3: specific, 7 months, mother in 65% of cases, show anxiety
4: multiple, after stage 3, multiple secondary attachments. 29% within one month, 100% by one year.
STAGES OF ATTACHMENT
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Good external validity, observed in natural environment by parents (not anxious)
– Good real world application, helps parents decide when best time for babies to start daycare/cared for by others
LIMITATIONS
– Mothers being main observers = highest, find it hard to be objective/notice behaviours
– Poor general liability, unique, cultural, and historical context
ROLE OF FATHER
Ao1
father is usually secondary because traditionally worked, mother‘s birth and breastfeed.
THREE CONTRADICTORY RESEARCH
1) Schaffer and Emerson
Father is secondary attachment
– Only 3% of cases was father primary attachment, 27% joint
– by 18 months only 75% attached to father
2) Grossman
Differing roles
– Longitudinal study looking at parents relationship to children’s later attachments.
– found importance of quality of father’s play, suggesting fathers play and stimulation role
3) Field
Fathers can be emotional/nurturing
– Studied four month babies in conditions: primary mothers, secondary fathers, primary fathers
– primary fathers spend more time smiling, imitating, holding than secondary
– suggest fathers can be nurturing primary attachment, gender irrelevant only level of emotional responsiveness
ROLE OF FATHER
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– real world application, offer advice to parents deciding who takes primary caregiver role, field says gender doesn’t matter
LIMITATIONS
– conflicting evidence, MacCallum and Golombok found same-sex/single parent family children don’t develop differently, contradicts Grossman
COUNTERPOINT: mothers could be adapting to father‘s role
– confusing research question, some interested in researching our secondary (few differently), others concerned with can father be suitable primary care caregiver
ANIMAL STUDIES
Ao1
Advantages:
– Cheap, easy to breed
– Fewer ethical issues, no consent needed (experimental procedures e.g. surgery
Disadvantages:
– arguably unethical, cannot consent
– Can’t apply to complex human brains
LORENZ - IMPRINTING
– divided clutch of eggs in half, one mother one Lorenz
– Control group followed mother everywhere, second group followed Lorenz
– one released from box each gosling went to “mother figure “
– Critical period of 4–25 hours
Lorenz also noticed sexual imprinting (tortoise and Peacock)
HARLOW Rhesus Monkeys
– 16 monkeys immediately separated from mothers
– 8 milk from mother, 8 milk from cloth mother. Time with each measured.
RESULTS:
– Both spent longer with cloth mother, only fed from wire
– if frightened, all took refuge with cloth mother: contact comfort more important.
Long term effects of surrogate:
– timid, aggressive to other monkeys.
– Difficulty meeting, inadequate mothers
– Critical period:
Dysfunctional behaviours only if left with surrogate 90+ days. If fewer could be reversed.
ANIMAL STUDIES
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Supporting study: chicks exposed to simple shape combinations, followed original most closely, supports “and printing “
– Harlow’s research taught important key ideas: contact comfort importance, early attachments import for social development. Lead to practical applications e.g. key workers and zoo
LIMITATIONS
– Generalising animal studies to humans, different brains + social structures
– ethical issues, Harlows monkeys suffered greatly
EXPLANATIONS A – LEARNING THEORY
Ao1
NURTURE – CLASSICAL AND OPERANT CONDITIONING
CLASSICAL CONDITIONING Dollard and Miller
– Form attachment through association with milk
– Cupboard love theory
OPERANT CONDITIONING.
– Comfort provided to baby by food, mother is secondary reinforcer so attachment forms open (reduces hunger feelings)
– Mother is negatively reinforced, avoid crying
LEARNING THEORY
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Dollard and Miller argued in first year babies fed 2000 times, giving many opportunities for attachment through conditioning
LIMITATIONS
– Harlows RESEARCH DIRECTLY CONTRADICTS, CONTACT COMFORT MORE IMPORTANT.
– Schaffer AND Emerson RESEARCH FOUND MOTHERS = MAIN ATTACHMENT, EVEN IF SHE DIDN’T USUALLY FEED THE BABY. SHOWS EMOTIONAL RESPONSIVENESS MORE IMPORTANT
– BEHAVIOURIST EXPLANATIONS REDUCTIONIST, EXPLAIN COMPLEX BEHAVIOURS IN SIMPLEST WAY POSSIBLE, DON’T CONSIDER COGNITIVE PROCESSES/EMOTIONS.
EXPLANATIONS B – BOWLBY’S THEORY
Ao1
presumed attachment = evolutionary adaptation
4 KEY COMPONENTS:
1) MONOTROPY
– Attachment to one specific caregiver
– law of continuity: constant + predictable care = better attachment
– law of accumulated separation: effects of every separation add up
2) SOCIAL RELEASERS
– Innate cute behaviours e.g. smiling, cooling, gripping
– encourage attention + interaction, leading to attachment
– reciprocal + “hardwired “process
3) CRITICAL PERIOD
– around six months one sensitive, can extend to 2 years
– if not formed within, much harder to form at attachments later
4) INTERNAL WORKING MODEL
– Forms mental representation of primary attachment relationship
– Can be “passed down “, affects future relationships
BOWLBY’S THEORY
Ao1
STRENGTHS
- Bailey supporting study. Assessed 99 mother/grandmother/babies, and quality of attachment found good = good, and poor = poor – supports IWM/continuity hypothesis
–Brazelton observed mother/baby interactions, found interactional synchrony exists, and distress when social releases ignored supports “built-in“ social releasers theory
LIMITATIONS
– Monroy equals = socially sensitive, implications for mothers lifestyle choices. Bowlby’s research funded by government post war.
- Kagan innate characteristics e.g. easy/difficult impact quality of relationship. Will be overlooked external factors e.g. personality – siblings different attachment types.
TYPES OF ATTACHMENT
Ao1
AINSWORTH
observed 26 mothers for 9 mo., infants 15 weeks–2 years. there is three distinct attachment types, created strange situation.
PROCEDURE
– mother and infant enter, stranger attempts to interact (stranger anxiety)
– mother leaves (stranger/separation), mother returns stranger leaves (response to reunion/proximity seeking)
– mother/stranger swap again
FINDINGS UK
TYPE A (avoidant): 20–25%
TYPE B (secure): 60–75%.
TYPE C (resistant): 3%.
TYPES OF ATTACHMENT
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Good internal validity, higher level of control Bick found different trained observers agree on attachment types found in 94% of cases
– Strange situation outcomes can predict some later development McCormick found type B achieve better in school, might have better mental health
LIMITATIONS
– Not good ecological validity, artificial situation might not show real behaviour from mother (and baby)
– doesn’t account for fourth category, disorganise/type D attachment
CULTURAL VARIATIONS
Ao1
Van Ijzendoorn and Kroonenburg
– Meta analysis of 32 strange situation attachment studies 1,990 children studied
FINDINGS
– Type B most common overall, supports Ainsworth
– varied from 75% (UK) to 50% (China)
- Insecure avoidant varied from 5% Japan to 35% Germany
– Insecure resistant least common (3% UK 230% Israel
– Collective this cultures e.g. Japan/Israel found high insecure resistant
Due to Israeli children raised in Kibbutz , Japanese children rarely left by mother
– Found differences within cultures also, showing might be social class/ethnically based
– Changes overtime. Italian study found 50% secure 36% avoidant, more mothers working and using child care.
CULTURAL VARIATIONS
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– most studies conducted by indigenous researchers language barriers and misunderstandings not a problem, enhanced validity
LIMITATIONS
– Confounding variables, as matter analysis different countries may not be more matched for ensemble characteristics + environmental variables may differ.
– imposed attic: strange situation may not apply to non-western cultures developed by American researcher for Western values of attachment
BOWLBY‘S MATERNAL DEPRIVATION THEORY
Ao1
Critical period of 2.5 years, if deprived within this intellectual and emotional development affected.
44 THIEVES STUDY:
PROCEDURE
– Study linked affectionate psychopathy and maternal deprivation
– 88 teenagers, 44 control, 44 thieves
– interviewed, 14 described as affection the psychopaths.
- 12 found signs of early prolonged maternal separation (control only two)
BOWLBY’S MATERNAL DEPRIVATION THEORY
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Levy found separating rats from mothers even for one day had permanent effect on social development
– Bilco found women experienced deprivation had 10% increased risk of depression/anxiety disorders, much worse if before age of 6
LIMITATIONS
- Czech twins case study contradicts critical period (were discovered at age 7)
– researcher bias, will be carried out interviews himself, knew in advance which teenagers expected to see affection psychopathy
INSTITUTIONALISATION - ROMANIAN ORPHANS
Ao1
Rutter Romanian Orphan Study
PROCEDURE
– Followed 165 remaining orphans adopted in Britain
– Physical, cognitive, emotional development assessed between ages 4–15
– 52 adopted British children = control group
FINDINGS
Adopted before 6 months: average IQ at 11 = 102, caught up with British by age 4
Rarely disinhibited
6 months – 2 years: IQ at 11 = 86
Showed disinhibited attachment
After two years: IQ at 11 = 77
Showed attachment
EFFECTS OF INSTITUTIONALISATION
Physical underdevelopment : lack of emotional care = deprivation dwarfism
Poor parenting: experience extreme difficulties parenting
Intellectual and functioning: signs of disability/learning difficulties.
Disinhibited attachment: due to living with multiple caregivers, attempting to attention seek.
Quasi autism: communication difficulties/repetitive behaviours
INSTITUTIONALISATION
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Real world application, improvement in orphanage care – key workers
– few confounding variables, no neglect/abuse/bereavement (abandoned at birth)
LIMITATIONS
– Not generalisable: conditions of orphanage so bad results don’t apply to general deprivation.
– lack of data on adult development, too soon to see permanent effects
EARLY ATTACHMENTS ON LATER RELATIONSHIPS
Ao1
Internal working model – Bowlby
– Suggest first primary attachment forms mental template for future relationships.
– can predict future behaviour (continuity hypothesis)
EARLY/CHILDHOOD ATTACHMENTS
Kerns
– Found secure infants = best quality childhood friendships
– Insecurely attached have friendship difficulties.
Insecure avoidant most likely to be bullied, insecure resistant to be bullies
EARLY EFFECT ON ADULT RELATION.
McCarthy
secure = best friendships + relationships
Resistant = problems friendships
Avoidant = struggle with intimacy
Hazan and Shaver
“Love quiz“ of 100 questions
Asked about current and general love experiences, childhood experiences
found secure = lasting relationships
avoidant = jealousy, and fear of intimacy
EARLY EFFECT ON PARENTING
Bailey study on 99 mother/baby/grandmothers
– found children’s attachment type correlated with their own indicating continuity hypothesis.
Institutionalised women = extreme difficulty parenting
EARLY ATTACHMENT AND FUTURE RELATIONSHIPS
Ao3
STRENGTHS
– Many studies showing link between infant attachment and later development. Fearon and Roisman review concluded all attachment consistently predicts
– Real world application: secure attachment appears to convey advantages for future relationships/development, helps emphasise importance
LIMITATIONS
– Many studies are retrospective and not longitudinal, assess attachment type in adult not infancy – may not remember accurately/honestly
– Influence of infant attachment on later life could be pessimistic and probabilistic. Emphasising risk unnecessary, not always doomed to have bad relationships.
