Attachment

Question 1

define attachment

Answer 1

• is a close two way emotional bond between two individuals
• each individuals sees the other as essential for their own emotional security.
• in human it takes a few months to develop

Question 2

we can see attachment has occurred when we see what following behaviours?

Answer 2

• proximity
• separation distress
• secure base behaviour

Question 3

describe proximity

Answer 3

people stay close to those they are attached to

Question 4

describe separation distress

Answer 4

people show distress when an attachment figure leaves

Question 5

describe secure base behaviour

Answer 5

even when we are independent of our attachment figures we make regular contact with them. infants show secure base behaviour when they regularly return to their attachment figure when playing

Question 6

define caregiver infant interactions

Answer 6

attachment begins with interactions between infants and their caregiver . the response of the caregiver to the infant can have a significant effect on the infants development

Question 7

what are the two forms of interactions between caregiver and infants

Answer 7

• reciprocity

- interactional synchrony

Question 8

describe reciprocity and an example

Answer 8

a description of how two people interact. mother infant interactions is reciprocal in that both infants and mother respond to each others signals and each elicits a response from the other

• same action
  eg smiling back and fourth

Question 9

describe interactional synchrony

and example

Answer 9

form of rhythmic interaction between infant and caregiver involving mutual focus, and mirroring of emotion or behaviour . infants coordinate their actions with caregivers in a kind of conversation, physical conversation

eg. he puts hands up, mother picks up

Question 10

research for reciprocity

Answer 10

brazleton et al

it seems that the baby takes an active role. both mother and child can imitate interactions and appear to take turns in doing so

Question 11

research for interactional synchrony

Answer 11

meltzoff and moore, infants as young as 3 days old imitate the facial expressions of adults . this implies that this ability to mirror is an innate behaviour and the child learns that they get attention

Question 12

what are the evaluations of caregiver infant interactions

Answer 12

strengths
-based on observational research , filming often captures lots of behaviours from different angles . babies are not effected by being filmed, therefore no observer effects and wont act differently and therefore be more reliable

weakness

• interpretation of what young children’s behaviour means, it could be interpreted wrong and provide the incorrect information , its only a guess as they cant talk
• understanding the purpose of reciprocity and synchrony behaviours may be observed however we do not know why they are occurring

Question 13

describe the development of attachment

- Shaffer and emerson

Answer 13

• longitude study in natural environment
• observations and diary entrys can be subjective and social desirability
• measured attachment via separation distress: stranger anxiety

when

• first attachment usually formed by 8 months
• stranger anxiety usually 1 month later
• attachment strength peaks during first month

who

• 65% mother only
• 30% mother and other (often father)
• 3% only father

responsiveness , play and social influence matters most in attachment formation, not necessarily the person who fed , changed , washed or spent the most time with

Question 14

what are the stages of development

Answer 14

asocial stage
pre attachment
indiscriminate attachment
discriminate attachment

Question 15

describe the asocial stage

Answer 15

0-6 weeks

babies respond to human and non human objects is similar

Question 16

describe pre attachment stage

Answer 16

0-2 months

preferences for people over objects , but no discrimination between people

Question 17

describe indiscriminate stage

Answer 17

3-7 months

apparent preference for familiar people

Question 18

describe discriminate stage

Answer 18

7 months

true emotional attachment, multiple attachments by about 9 months

Question 19

role of fathers on attachment

Answer 19

fathers adopt a more play mate role than mothers, for example fathers are more likely than mothers to encourage risk taking in children’s play by engaging them in physical contact

• mothers more caregiver
• most infants prefer contact with their father when in a positive emotional state and wanting play where as mothers more for comfort and distress

Question 20

research for role of fathers

Answer 20

Grossman (2002) carried out a longitudinal study looking at both the parents’ behaviour and its relationship to the quality of the children’s attachment into their teens. Quality of infant attachment with mothers but not fathers was related to children’s attachment in adolescents suggesting that father attachment was less important. However, the quality of the fathers’ play with infants have a different role in attachment – one that is more to do with play and stimulation, and less to do with nurturing.

Question 21

describe multiple attachments

Answer 21

a baby can form several attachments by 10 months, including

• mother- main attachment
• father
• grandparents
• siblings
• neighbours

-varying strength and importance

more fun and encouraging more play as parents might be tired and more worried

Question 22

research for multiple attachments

Answer 22

john bawlby - observed children experienced extreme distress when separated from their mothers even when fed by other caregiver

Question 23

describe harlows research

Answer 23

1- took baby monkeys and isolated them from birth , 3 months, 6,9, and a year. he then put them back with other monkeys and they reacted by clutching their bodies and rocking compulsively
- meaning never forming a bond is permanently damaging

2- 8 monkeys were separated from their mothers at birth and placed into cages with 2 surrogate mothers ( one of cloth and one of wire ) . they spent more time and physical contact with the cloth mother and only go to wire for food, comfort over food

• if a frightening object was placed in the cage the infant took refuge with the cloth mother decrease fear
• concluded that for monkeys to develop normally they must have some interactions with an object to which they can cling to during the first month of life,

over 90 days is irreversible

Question 24

evaluation of harlows experiment

Answer 24

strengths

• Can help us to understand some human behaviour as monkeys are the closest animal (psychologically) to humans
• It is appropriate to use monkey’s as it is far more unethical to take a newborn human baby away from its mother to be used in a study

weaknesses

• Monkey is taken away from the mother and not given a chance of normal life.
• Not a 100% accurate result of human behaviour.

Question 25

one similarity between harlow and Lorenz

Answer 25

is that they both have cut off points for when both animals can form attachments. after the critical period both animals cant form other attachments . although they both have critical periods they are at different times. lorenzs geese critical period is 32 hours wheras harlows monkeys had 2-3 months. this variation might be due to species

the fact that it was found in both researchers suggest that it does exist and is important when understanding attachment

Question 26

describe Lorenz experiment

Answer 26

• took a large clutch of goose eggs and kept them until they were about to hatch , half the eggs were then placed under a goose mother , while Lorenz kept the other half besides himself
• when the geese hatched Lorenz imitated a mothers duck quacking sound, upon which the young birds regarded him as their mother and followed him accordingly . the other group followed the geese. Lorenz found that geese followed the first moving object they see, during a 12-17 hour period after hatching ,this process is known as imprinting and suggests that attachment is innate and programmed
• if no attachment has developed within 32 hours it is unlikely any attachments will ever develop
• to ensure imprinting had occurred Lorenz put all the goslings together under an upturned box and allowed them to mix. when the box was removed the two groups separated to go to their respective mothers , half to goose, half to lorenz

Question 27

evaluation of Lorenz experiment

Answer 27

strengths

• reliable as its been replicated
• ecological validity as carried out in narural habitat not in lab
• A strength of Lorenz’s study is that its findings have been highly influential within the field of developmental psychology.EXAMPLE: For example, the fact that imprinting is seen to be irreversible (as suggested in Lorenz’s study) suggests that attachment formation is under biological control and that attachment formation happens within a specific time frame.EVALUATION: This is a strength because it lead developmental psychologists (such as Bowlby) to develop well recognised theories of attachment suggesting the attachment formation takes place during a critical period and is a biological process. Such theories have been highly influential in the way child care is administered today.

weaknesses

• unethical
• generalised to humans

Question 28

what are the two main theories for forming attachment

Answer 28

evolutionary

learning/ behaviourist

Question 29

describe evolutionary theory

Answer 29

suggests that children come into the world biologically pre-programmed to form attachments with others, because this will help them to survive. The infant produces innate ‘social releaser’ behaviors such as crying and smiling that stimulate innate caregiving responses from adults. The determinant of attachment is not food, but care and responsiveness.
Bowlby suggested that a child would initially form only one primary attachment (monotropy) and that the attachment figure acted as a secure base for exploring the world. The attachment relationship acts as a prototype for all future social relationships so disrupting it can have severe consequences.
This theory also suggests that there is a critical period for developing an attachment (about 0 -5 years). If an attachment has not developed during this period, then the child will suffer from irreversible developmental consequences, such as reduced intelligence and increased aggression

Question 30

supporting research for evolutionary theory

Answer 30

Lorenz
animals have an innate tendency to respond immediately to specific forms of stimuli , like visual markings or sounds, usually displayed by a parent . they are attached to these stimuli and will follow anyone displaying them, being content around them and being distressed when not. this suggests that this pre programming provides an evolutionary advantage as by staying close to the adult figure the infants are attached to make them safer from predators and environmental dangers

Question 31

opposing research for evolutionary theory

Answer 31

Thomas and chess - identified that babies have one of three basic personalities/ temperments when born
1- easy babies- regular sleep, and eat cycles
2-difficult babies- irregular eating and sleep cycles
3-slow to warm up babies- starts out irregular

kagan-founded the temperament hypothesis , by finding that infants have an innate personality, such as being easy or difficult , which influences the quality of their attachment with caregivers and later relationships with adults. this suggests that attachments form as a result of temperament not an innate gene for attachment , which goes against bowlbys theory

Question 32

application of evolutionary theory

Answer 32

• can be used to determine whether children should be placed in care
• children in care should be adopted during the critical period to make sure they form an attachment

Question 33

describe learning theory for attachment

Answer 33

suggest that attachment is a set of learned behaviors. The basis for the learning of attachments is the provision of food. An infant will initially form an attachment to whoever feeds it.
They learn to associate the feeder (usually the mother) with the comfort of being fed and through the process of classical conditioning, come to find contact with the mother comforting.
They also find that certain behaviors (e.g., crying, smiling) bring desirable responses from others (e.g., attention, comfort), and through the process of operant conditioning learn to repeat these behaviors to get the things they want

Question 34

supporting research for learning theory

Answer 34

dollard and miller
they say that attachment is learned through both classical and operant conditioning

Classical conditioning
Before attachment is learned, the infant gains pleasure through being fed.
Food is the unconditioned stimulus and pleasure is the unconditioned response.
When the infant is being fed, the infant associates the person providing the food with the food.
The primary caregiver is the neutral stimulus, which becomes associated with food (the unconditioned stimulus).
When the attachment has been learned, the infant gains pleasure when the primary caregiver is present.
The primary caregiver is now the conditioned stimulus and pleasure is now the conditioned response.

Operant conditioning
When an infant is hungry it is in an uncomfortable state. Relieving the uncomfortable state will make the infant more comfortable, and so anything it does to make itself more comfortable will be learned through negative reinforcement.
A hungry baby will cry because it is distressed.
Feeding the baby makes it more comfortable, and so crying is learned through negative reinforcement.
Over time the pleasure of being made comfortable by being fed becomes associated with the primary caregiver.
The baby has now learned to cry to get the primary caregiver’s attention, and it feels pleasure when the primary caregiver is present. Attachment has now been learned.

Question 35

evaluations of learning theory as an explanation of attachment

Answer 35

s

• lots of evidence - so improves accuracy
• Learning theory provides a very plausible and scientifically reliable explanation for attachment formation. It seems highly likely that simple association between the provision of needs essential for survival and the person providing those needs can lead to strong attachments.

w

• However the theory is extremely reductionist and there is evidence that infants can form attachments with a person who is not the primary care-giver.
• mainly research on animals

Question 36

describe ainsworth strange situation

Answer 36

-The experiment is set up in a small room with one way glass so the behavior of the infant can be observed covertly. Infants were aged between 12 and 18 months. The sample comprised of 100 middle-class American families

• Mother, baby, and experimenter (lasts less than one minute).
  (2) Mother and baby alone.
  (3) A stranger joins the mother and infant.
  (4) Mother leaves baby and stranger alone.
  (5) Mother returns and stranger leaves.
  (6) Mother leaves; infant left completely alone.
  (7) Stranger returns.
  (8) Mother returns and stranger leaves

Scoring

Strange Situation classifications (i.e., attachment styles) are based primarily on four interaction behaviors directed toward the mother in the two reunion episodes (Ep. 5 & Ep. 8).
Proximity and contacting seeking
Contact maintaining
Avoidance of proximity and contact
Resistance to contact and comforting
The observer notes down the behavior displayed during 15-second intervals and scores the behavior for intensity on a scale of 1 to 7.

Ainsworth (1970) identified three main attachment styles, secure (type B), insecure avoidant (type A) and insecure ambivalent/resistant (type C). She concluded that these attachment styles were the result of early interactions with the mother.

Question 37

describe cross cultural differences in attachment

Answer 37

ainsworth strange situation
-used meta analysis from 34 studies in 8 countries , they calculated the average percentage for different attachment styles

• secure attachment was most common in all cultures.
• the lowest percentage of secure attachment was shown in china and the highest in the uk
• results showed that individualistic countries that support independence such as Germany had high levels of anxious avoidnace
• where as countries which are more culturally close such as japan had quite high levels of ambivalent resistance

assume that behavior has the same meaning in all cultures when in fact cultural perception and understanding of behaviors differ greatly
- created in USA so could be culturally biased

Question 38

influence of early attachments on childhood relationships

Answer 38

According to Bowlby’s theory when we form our primary attachment we also make a mental representation of what a relationship is (internal working model) which we then use for all other relationships in the future i.e. friendships, working and romantic relationships.
In other words there will be continuity between early attachment experiences and later relationships. This is known as the continuity hypothesis.
According to attachment theory, the child who has a secure attachment style should be more confident in interactions with friends.

Question 39

the influence of early attachments on adult relationships

Answer 39

Research indicates an intergenerational continuity between adults attachment types and their children, including children adopting the parenting styles of their own parents. People tend to base their parenting style on the internal working model so attachment type tends to be passed on through generations of a family

They conducted a study to collect information of participant’s early attachment types and their attitudes towards loving relationships. Of the volunteer sample, they found that those who were securely attached as infants tended to have long lasting relationships, on the other hand, insecurely attached people found adult relationships more difficult, tended to divorce, and believed love was rare. This supports the idea that childhood experiences have significant impacts on people’s attitude towards later relationships

Question 40

influence of early attachments on childhood relationships

research

Answer 40

Considerable evidence has supported this view. For example, the Minnesota study (2005) followed participants from infancy to late adolescence and found continuity between early attachment and later emotional/social behavior. Securely attached children were rated most highly for social competence later in childhood, were less isolated and more popular than insecurely attached children.

Question 41

the influence of early attachments on adult relationships

Answer 41

Research by Bailey (2007) found that the majority of women had the same attachment classification both to their babies and their own mothers.

Adult relationships are likely to reflect early attachment style. This is because the experience a person has with their caregiver in childhood would lead to the expectation of the same experiences in later relationships. This is illustrated in Hazan and Shaver’s love quiz experiment. They conducted a study to collect information of participants’ early attachment styles and their attitudes towards loving relationships.
They found that those who were securely attached as infants tended to have happy lasting relationships. On the other hand, insecurely attached people found adult relationships more difficult, tended to divorce and believed love was rare. This supports the idea that childhood experiences have significant impact on people’s attitude toward later relationships.

Question 42

types of attachments

Answer 42

secure
insecure avoidant
insecure resistant

Question 43

describe secure attachment

Answer 43

Securely attached children comprised the majority of the sample in Ainsworth’s (1971, 1978) studies.

Such children feel confident that the attachment figure will be available to meet their needs. They use the attachment figure as a safe base to explore the environment and seek the attachment figure in times of distress (Main, & Cassidy, 1988).
Securely attached infants are easily soothed by the attachment figure when upset. Infants develop a secure attachment when the caregiver is sensitive to their signals, and responds appropriately to their needs

Question 44

describe insecure avoidant

Answer 44

Insecure avoidant children do not orientate to their attachment figure while investigating the environment.
They are very independent of the attachment figure both physically and emotionally (Behrens, Hesse, & Main, 2007).
They do not seek contact with the attachment figure when distressed. Such children are likely to have a caregiver who is insensitive and rejecting of their needs (Ainsworth, 1979). The attachment figure may withdraw from helping during difficult tasks (Stevenson-Hinde, & Verschueren, 2002) and is often unavailable during times of emotional distress.

Question 45

describe insecure resistant

Answer 45

Here children adopt an ambivalent behavioral style towards the attachment figure. The child will commonly exhibit clingy and dependent behavior, but will be rejecting of the attachment figure when they engage in interaction.
The child fails to develop any feelings of security from the attachment figure. Accordingly, they exhibit difficulty moving away from the attachment figure to explore novel surroundings. When distressed they are difficult to soothe and are not comforted by interaction with the attachment figure. This behavior results from an inconsistent level of response to their needs from the primary caregiver.

Question 46

define maternal deprivation

Answer 46

is the emotional and intellectual consequences of separation between a child and his/her mother or mother substitute

Question 47

what is bowlbys theory of maternal deprivation

Answer 47

Bowlby’s Maternal Deprivation Hypothesis suggests that continual disruption of the attachment between infant and primary caregiver (i.e. mother) could result in long term cognitive, social, and emotional difficulties for that infant. Bowlby originally believed the effects to be permanent and irreversible.

He argued that the first 2.5 years of life, the critical period, were crucial. If the child was separated from their primary attachment figure (often the mother) for an extended period of time and in the absence of substitute care damage was inevitable.

Use the acronym - ADDIDDAS to remember the effects of maternal deprivation: Aggression, Delinquency, Dwarfism, Intellectual retardation, Depression, Dependency, Affectionless Psychopathy, Social maladjustment.

Affectionless psychopathy is an inability show affection or concern for others, lack of shame or sense of responsibility. Such individuals act on impulse with little regard for the consequences of their actions. For example, showing no guilt for antisocial behavior.

Question 48

describe the critical period of maternal deprivation

Answer 48

the first 30 months of life are a critical period for psychological development, if the child is separated from their mother in absence of a suitable substitute care and so deprived of her emotional care for an extended period during the critical period then bowlby believed , psychological damage was inevitable

Question 49

what research is used for the effect on development

Answer 49

Goldfarb

Question 50

describe goldfarbs research

Answer 50

orphanage study
group 1-sent few months in and orphaned and were fostered
group 2- spent three years in a orphanage before being fostered

group 2 suffered intellectual development and little opportunity to develop attachments

Question 51

what is intellectual development

Answer 51

• lower IQ tests

- less social

Question 52

what is emotional development

Answer 52

• unable to experience guilt
• behave in a cold matter
• unable to express empathy
• depression
• aggressive
• less social

Question 53

describe bowblys research

Answer 53

He selected an opportunity sample of 88 children attending his clinic.

Group 1- thief group: 31 boys and 13 girls in the ‘theft group’ were referred to him because of their stealing.

Group 2- control group: 34 boys and 10 girls were referred to him because of emotional problems.

The two groups were matched for age and IQ.

The children and their parents were interviewed and tested by a psychiatrist (Bowlby), a psychologist and a social worker focusing specifically on their early life experiences.

14 children from the theft group were identified as affectionless psychopaths, 12 of those had experienced prolonged separation of more than six months from their mothers in their first two years of life whereas only 5 of the 30 children not classified as affectionless psychopaths* had experienced separations. Out of the 44 children in the control group, only 2 had experienced prolonged separations and none of them were affectionless psychopaths.

Question 54

criticism of theory of maternal deprivation

Answer 54

• we can form multiple attachments , so could provide comfort and support even if mother wasnt around
• validity over time
• stay at home dads
• research against

Question 55

describe the Romanian orphanage studies

Answer 55

Procedure: Rutter (1998) studied Romanian orphans who had been placed in orphanages, aged 1-2 weeks old, with minimal adult contact. This was a Longitudinal study and natural experiment, using a group of around 100 Romanian orphans and assessed at ages 4, 6 and 11, then re-assesed 21 years later.
58 babies were adopted before 6 months old and 59 between the ages of 6-24 months old. 48 babies were adopted late between 2-4 years old. These were the 3 conditions Rutter used in his study.
Findings: Those who were adopted by British families before 6 months old showed ‘normal’ emotional development compared with UK children adopted at the same age.
Many adopted after 6 months old showed disinhibited attachments (e.g. attention seeking behavior towards all adults, lack of fear of strangers, inappropriate physical contact, lack of checking back to the parent in stressful situations) and had problems with peers.
Conclusion: This study suggests long-term consequences may be less severe than was once thought if children have the opportunity to form attachments. When children don’t form attachments, the consequences are likely to be severe

Question 56

what are the effects of institutionalisation

Answer 56

disinhibited attachments - at the age of 2, the institutionalised children showed a range of unusual behaviours , rather than showing fear of strangers they would run t to any adult who entered the room and demanded their attention in a indiscriminate manner, they would also cry when these adults left even tho they had no attachment

family relationships- tizard and hodge found that almost all of the adoptees and some restored children formed close attachments to their parents by 8, this may have been due to the considerable effort made by adoptive families to form a strong attachment . the restored group had worse relationships with their siblings than the adoptees. however all three groups raised in the institution had difficulties with peer relationships and were less likely to be in a crowd at school

• adopted = good family relations
• restored = problems and difficulties

quality of care- effects of institutionalisation depends to a large extent on the quality of emotional care provided in an institution . concluded that the negative effects of institutionalisation can be removed when babies had opportunity’s to form close attachments
-dontas research shows how important it is for children in institutions to be able to develop attachments to staff between 6 and 8 months

Question 57

describe bowlbys montropic attachment theory

Answer 57

Bowlby’s monotropic theory of attachment suggests attachment is important for a child’s survival. Attachment behaviors in both babies and their caregivers have evolved through natural selection.This means infants are biologically programmed with innate behaviors that ensure that attachment occurs.

Critical Period
This theory also suggests that there is a critical period for developing at attachment (about 0 - 2.5 years). If an attachment has not developed during this time period then hen it may well not happen at all.

Monotropy
A child has an innate (i.e. inborn) need to attach to one main attachment figure. This is called monotropy. This concept of monotropy suggests that there is one relationship which is more important than all the rest. Although Bowlby did not rule out the possibility of other attachment figures for a child, he did believe that there should be a primary bond which was much more important than any other (usually the mother).

Other attachments may develop in a hierarchy below this. An infant may therefore have a primary monotropy attachment to its mother, and below her the hierarchy of attachments my include its father, siblings, grandparents, etc

Question 58

internal working model

Answer 58

The child’s relationship with a primary caregiver provides an internal working model which influences later relationships. This internal working model is a cognitive framework comprising mental representations for understanding the world, self and others. A person’s interaction with others is guided by memories and expectations from their internal model which influence and help evaluate their contact with others.

There are three main features of the internal working model: (1) a model of others as being trustworthy, (2) a model of the self as valuable, and (3) a model of the self as effective when interacting with others. Around the age of three these seem to become part of a child’s personality and thus affects their understanding of the world and future interactions with others.

Question 59

examples of separation vs deprivation

Answer 59

s

• going to shops
• babysitter/ work
• nursery

d

• hospital
• divorce
• prison
• holiday