attachment Flashcards
1
Q
What did Bowlby base his theory on?
-why?
A
Evolutionary principles
- he preferred Harlow and Lorenz’s suggestion from their animal studies that attachment is an innate, pre programmed system that has developed through evolution
- he believed attachment formation gives a survival advantage
2
Q
What did Bowlby reject as an explanation for attachment?
A
Learning theory
3
Q
What are the 5 components of A.S.C.M.I
A
- adaptive
- social releasers
- critical period
- monotropy
- internal working model
4
Q
Describe adaptive
A
- they give our species ‘adaptive advantage’
- this is because if an infant has attachment to a caregiver they are kept safe, given food and kept warm
5
Q
Describe social releasers
A
- ‘cute’ behaviours baby’s are pre-programmed to do e.g gripping fingers
- encourages attachment from adults to activate the adult attachment system
6
Q
Describe critical period
A
- babies have an innate drive to attach, and innate biological behaviours often have specific time frames
- critical period is believed to be between birth and 2 and a half years, after this point they will no longer be able to form attachments
- if this didn’t happen, the child would be damaged for life- socially, emotionally, intellectually and physically
7
Q
What is the critical period thought to be
A
between birth and 2 and a half years
8
Q
Describe monotropy
A
Bowlby placed great emphasis on one particular caregiver, the attachment to this person is different and more important than others
Bowlby called this person the ‘mother’ but said it didn’t need to be the biological mother
9
Q
What are the two principles in monotropy?
A
- ) The law of continuity
2. ) The law of accumulated separation
10
Q
Monotropy: what is the law of continuity?
A
The more constant and predictable a Child’s care, the better the quality of their attachment
11
Q
Monotropy: what is the law of accumulated separation?
A
The effects of every separation from the mother add up, the safest if therefore a zero dose
12
Q
Describe the Internal working model
A
Monotropy means the infant has just one special relationship- this helps them form a mental representation of the relationship, known as working memory model
13
Q
AO3: Bowlby’s monotropic theory, a strength is that there is a wealth of supporting evidence (Brazelton et al)
A
*BRAZELTON ET AL: observed mothers-reported the existence of interactional synchrony. In an experiment they told the primary attachment figure to ignore the baby social releasers. They found that initially the baby was upset at being ignored but eventually responded by curling up and lying motionless-supports significance of social releasers
14
Q
AO3: Bowlby’s monotropic theory, a strength is that there is a wealth of supporting evidence (Suess et al)
A
- SUESS ET AL: Studied children attachments to both their mother and father and their later relationship formation. They found attachment to the mother was most important in predicting future relationship behaviour. This suggests that Bowlby’s ideas on montropy are correct.
- However some argued while the primary attachment is stronger it does not mean It is qualitatively different
15
Q
AO3: Bowlby’s monotropic theory, however Schaffer & Emerson provide evidence against the idea of monotropy
A
- found that babies developed attachments that weren’t necessarily the primary caregiver
- monotropy therefore isn’t correct as attachment to the primary caregiver isn’t more important than others
16
Q
AO3: Bowlby’s monotropic theory, Monotropy is a socially sensitive idea
A
- Bowlby is saying that the law of accumulated separation means the more time that the mother has separate from the child the more disadvantages the child will have in a range of ways when they are older
- Feminists like Eric Burman have pointed out that this places a burden on mothers, setting them up to take the blame for anything that goes wrong in a Childs life
- it also implies that women should not go to work, this feeds on traditional stereotype gender roles and limits the options
- Bowlby felt HOWEVER that he was boosting the status’s of mothers by emphasising their importance
17
Q
AO3: Bowlby’s monotropic theory, a strength is that there are real world applications
A
- critical period research has had a significant impact on maternity leave, accumulated separation states having substantial time apart from the primary attachment risks poor quality attachments
- because of this women are offered longer maternity leave
- HOWEVER whilst this may be advantageous for the baby. Feminists point out the burden this places on mothers as if they have to go back to work they take the blame
18
Q
AO3: Bowlby’s monotropic theory, it could be argued that this period is sensitive not critical
A
- according to Bowlby it is not possible to form attachments after the critical period
- Rutter et al showed that this is true but only to an extent. Attachments are less likely to form after this period but it is not impossible
- For this reason researchers refer to this as a sensitive period to reflect the view that attachments are much easier to form within this time
19
Q
What is reciprocity?
A
- Responding to the actions of another with an action (where the action of one partner elicts a response from the other)
- the interaction flows back and fourth between the caregiver and the infant
- serves to reinforce the attachment bond
20
Q
Reciprocity: what are ‘alert phases’
A
When babies are ready for interaction and they signal this to the mother
21
Q
Reciprocity: What proportion of the time do mothers pick up and respond to ‘alert phases’
A
2/3 of the time
22
Q
Reciprocity: The … is important for later communication skills. The sensitivity level is also a … to the attachment type that follows
A
- ) Rhythm
2. )Pre cursor
23
Q
What is interactional synchrony?
A
- when two people interact they tend to mirror what each other is doing, this includes facial and bodily movements, emotions and behaviours
- the actions and emotions are in a coordinated pattern
- mother and infant interactions mirror one another
24
Q
How could interactional synchrony be defined
A
“as the temporal condition of micro-level social behaviour”
25
Describe the effects of bodily contact
-Klaus and Kennell compared mums who had extended physical contact with their babies lasting several hours a day with mums who only had physical feeding time in the three times after birth. One month later the mums with greater physical contact were found to cuddle the babies more and made greater eye contact with them. The effects were still noticeable a year later
26
Evaluate bodily contact
A practical application of the research was that hospitals placed mothers and babies in the same room in the days following birth, rather than the previous practice of rooming them apart
27
Describe motherese
-Papousek et al found that the tendency to show rising voice to show an infant that it was their turn in the interaction was cross-cultural. American, Chinese and German mothers all exhibited that behaviour
-this suggests that it is an innate device to facilitate the formation of attaachments
HOWEVER motherese is often used by all adults to all infants, not just ones they have attachments to. This suggests it helps communication with infants but not specifically attachment
28
AO3 :Caregiver-infant interaction: research support for caregiver infant interactions uses controlled observations. This is a strength because...?
- observations of mothers and infants are often well controlled with both mother and infant being filmed from multiple angles, this ensures that very fine details of behaviours are seen and can be analysed again and again
- because baby's do not know they are being observed they act normally which increases the validity of the research
- HOWEVER there are difficulties in testing babies behaviours, their mouths are in a constant motion and some of the motions being tested (e.g sticking out tongue) occur frequently, making it difficult to identify wether it is response or normal behaviour
29
AO3 :Caregiver-infant interaction: There is a wealth of supporting research
* CONDON AND SANDER analysed frame-by-frame recordings of infants movements, they found that infants coordinated their movements in sequence of adult speech
* MELTZOFF AND MOORE observed the beginnings of interactional synchrony in infants as young as 2 weeks. An adult displayed one of the three facial expressions or 1 hand gesture, the baby had a dummy in it to stop them repeating the gesture straight away, this was then removed and the Childs response was filmed, there was found to be an association between the two
30
AO3 :Caregiver-infant interaction: A further strength is that behaviour is intentional and human specific
* ABREVAL AND DEYONG observed infant behaviour when interacting with two objects , one that simulated a tongue movement and the other a mouth opening and closing
- at 5 and 12 weeks babies showed little response to either object
- they concluded that this shows that infants do not just imitate everything they see. Their responses are a specific social response to other humans.
31
AO3 :Caregiver-infant interaction: However interactional synchrony is not universal
- interactional synchrony is not found in all cultures
- Le vine studied Kenyan mothers and found that they have little physical contact or interactions with their infants (low interactional synchrony)but go on to have secure attachments
- this weakness supports the idea that it is not necessary for attachments to form
32
AO3 :Caregiver-infant interaction: A further issue is that we do not know for certain that these interactions are specifically for attachment formation
- the ideas of synchrony and reciprocity simply decide what behaviours we are seeing in research. While they can be reliably observed this may not be useful as it does not tell us their purpose
- there are some ideas that they help develop attachments or relieve stress but simple observations of the behaviours do not help us identify wether this is the case
33
Describe Lorenz's procedure
- Set up an experiment where he randomly divided a clutch of goose eggs into two groups
1. )Half hatched with mother
2. )The other half hatched in an incubator (the first moving object these Geese saw was Lorenz)
- He wanted to see if they had imprinted
34
Describe Lorenz's findings
- The goslings quickly divided up
- The incubator group followed Lorenz everywhere and showed no recognition of their mother, Lorenz called this imprinting, where birds attach to the first moving object that they see
- Lorenz identified a critical period where imprinting took place (this could be as brief as a few hours)
- if imprinting doesn't occur the chicks don't attach to anyone
35
What did Harlow predict that attachment was not based on?
Feeding, as learning theory suggests
36
Describe Harlow's procedure
- He reared 16 baby monkeys with 2 fake model mothers
- 8 of the monkeys were studied for 165 days
- for 4 the milk that was dispensed was attached to the wire mother
- for the 4 other it was dispensed by the soft cloth mother
- the monkeys were observed and the measurements were taken of how long they spent with each other and who they went to when frightened.
37
Describe Harlow's results
- all 8 monkeys spent most time with their cloth mother, wether or not she was the one that fed them
- the monkeys that fed from the wire mother only spent a short amount of time getting milk and then returned to the cloth mother. The babies would also keep on the foot of the cloth mother when playing
- this suggests the infants did not attach to the person that fed them but to the mother that offered them contact comfort
- concluded that there was a critical period- baby's need a mother figure within the first 90 days in order to form an attachment, after this time attachment is impossible
38
What was the critical period that Harlow concluded upon?
90 days
39
Describe Harlow's results into deprivation of a proper mother figure - maternal deprivation
The monkeys reared only with a wire mother were the most dysfunctional, however even those with only a wire mother and a cloth mother did not develop normal social behaviour as adults , they did not show normal mating behaviours and did not cradle comfort their own babies, they also neglected their own young
40
A03: Lorenz's Geese: Guitton et al
- found that chickens would imprint on washing gloves, shows they have the predisposition to imprint on any moving object that is present during the critical window
- the chickens tried to mate with the rubber gloves, supports link between imprinting and reproductive behaviour
- however over time the chicks learnt to prefer other chickens, suggesting the influence of imprinting on mating behaviour is not permanent
41
AO3 :Lorenz's Geese: Mammalian attachment system is quite different to that of birds
- Lorenz tested on birds= problems generalising the findings to humans
- Mammalian attachment system quite different from birds e.g mammalian mothers show more attachment to infants, they can also form attachments later
42
A03: Harlow: A strength is Harlow's research has theoretical value
- Harlow's research has had a massive impact on our understanding of attachment
- It has mainly showed that attachments form as a result to the caregiver giving comfort, not them being the feeder
- has showed the importance of having high quality, early relationships
43
A03: Harlow: There have been many important applications from Harlow's work
- It has helped social workers to understand the risk factors in child neglect and abuse, they can therefore prevent it more easily
- It helps us know how to best care for captive monkeys knowing the importance of helping them form proper attachments in zoos and breeding programmes in the wild
44
A03: Harlow: However a criticism of Harlow's work is that is is unethical
- His monkeys suffered greatly as a result of these studies, there was lasting emotional harm
- We consider monkeys to be similar enough to us to be able to generalise findings so they are similar enough to. feel distress as we do
- HOWEVER it could be said the research was sufficiently important enough to justify the effects. It has led to better care for humans and primate infants
45
A03: Harlow: Can we really apply findings from monkeys to humans?
YES:-support from human studies (Schaffer) who found babies attach to the most comforting person (not the one who feeds them)
-monkeys are more closely related to humans than Lorenz's Geese
NO:-
-they are still not human, huge differences = problems in generalising
-psychologists disagree on the extent to which we generalise
46
How did Dollard and Miller apply classical conditioning to attachment formation?
1.) BEFORE CONDITIONING
Food=Unconditioned stimulus ... Happy baby = Unconditioned response
2.) DURING CONDITIONING
Mother=Neutral stimulus ... Food=Unconditioned stimulus .. Happy baby=Unconditioned response
3.)AFTER CONDITIONING
Conditioned stimulus=mother ... Happy baby=conditioned response
47
Describe how Dollard and Miller applied operant conditioning to attachment formation
They emphasised the importance of the caregiver as the provider of food
- the baby is hungry so cries (the behaviour)
- the baby gets fed by the caregiver positively reinforcing the crying behaviour
- this results in more crying behaviour for comfort linked to that one caregiver forming an attachment over time due to the reinforcement and repetition of the behaviour
48
Describe attachment as a secondary drive
-learning theory drives on the concept of drive reduction
-hunger= primary drive (it is an innate biological motivator)
-as caregiver provide food the primary drive of hunger becomes generalised to them
attachment is thus a secondary drive as it is learned by association and the satisfaction of the primary drive
49
Describe social learning theory in attachment
- modelling can explain attachment behaviours
- children observe their parents affectionate behaviours and imitate this
- parents also instruct children how to behave in relationships
- parents also reward appropriate behaviours such as hugs and punish non-appropriate behaviours
50
AO3: Learning theory: there is contradictory evidence from animal studies (Lorenz, Harlow)
1. ) LORENZ'S GEESE: imprinted before they were fed, maintained these attachments regardless of who fed them
2. )HARLOW'S MONKEYS attached to the cloth mother, despite being fed by the wire mother
- Animal behaviour can be applied to human behaviour, this is the case for humans too, the learning theory for attachment can be seen as incorrect
51
AO3: Learning theory: Schaffer & Emmerson also provide evidence against learning theory of attachment
- Schaffer & Emmerson found that babies developed primary attachment figures that weren't necessarily the primary caregiver (feeder) who did most of the feeding
- indicates that feeding is not the only or even the most important aspect of attachment formation
52
AO3: Learning theory: Learning theory is largely based on studies with non-human animals
- e.g Skinners pigeons, Pavlovs dogs
- This is because behaviourists believe humans are no different in how they learn
- many behaviourists belive the same concept of stimulus and response, the argue it is legitimate to suggest that attachments might too
53
AO3: Learning theory: While learning theory may not provide a full explanation of attachment, it does have some value
- Infants do learn through association and reinforcement, it just might not be food that is the main reinforcement
- it may be that they learn attachments due to food and responsiveness from the caregiver as a reward instead
- these additional reinforces were not part of the learning theory
54
AO3: Learning theory: Bowlby's monotropic theory may be a better explanation
-He preferred Harlow and Lorenz's suggestion from their animal studies that attachment is an innate pre-programmed system that developed from evolution. He believed that attachment formation gives a survival advantage
55
What was Ainsworth et al's 'strange situation' aim?
To produce a method of assessing the quality of attachment by placing an infant in a situation of mild stress (to encourage the seek comfort) and of novelty (to encourage exploration behaviour)
56
Describe Ainsworth et al's 'strange situation' procedure
- A method of controlled observation
- Observers recorded the infants and mothers behaviour, especially noting the following
* separation anxiety: the unease the infant showed when left by the caregiver, Exploration: the infants willingness to explore
* stranger anxiety: the infants response to the presence of a stranger
* reunion behaviour:the way the caregiver was greeted on return
57
Who took part in Ainsworths strange situation experiment?
100 middle class American infants and their mothers
58
Describe 5 main steps in Ainsworths strange situations procedure
1. ) Parent sits while infant plays - secure base
2. )Parent leaves, infant plays, stranger offers comfort if needed - separation anxiety
3. )Parent returns, greets infant, offers comfort if needed, stranger leaves - reunion behaviour
4. ) Parent leaves, infant alone - separation anxiety
5. ) Parent returns, greets infant, offers comfort - reunion behaviour
59
What were the findings of Ainsworth's strange situation?
The observational record led Ainsworth and Bell to classify the infants into three broad groups
1. ) Securely attached
2. )Insecure-avoidant
3. )Insecure-resistant
60
What 'type' was securely attached
Type B
61
What 'type' was insecure-avoidant
Type A
62
What 'type' was insecure-resistant
Type C
63
What percentage of infants were classified as securely attached
66%
64
What percentage of infants were classified as insecure avoidant
22%
65
What percentage of infants were classified as insecure resistant
12%
66
Describe the group securely attached
Ane group of infants tended to explore the unfamiliar room, they were subdued when their mother left and greeted her positively when she returned. The infants showed moderate avoidance of the stranger, although were friendly when mother was present. The mothers were described as sensitive
67
Describe the group Insecure-avoidant
A second group did not orientate to their mother while investigating the toys and room, they did not seem concerned by her absence and showed little interest in her when she returned. These infants also avoided the stranger, but not as strongly as they avoided their mother on her return. It was observed that these mothers sometimes ignored their infants
68
Describe the group insecure-resistant
A third group showed intense distress, particularly when the mother was absent, but they rejected her when she returned. These infants showed ambivalent behaviour towards the stranger, similar to the pattern of resistance and interest shown to their mother on her return. These mothers appeared to behave ambivalently towards their infants
69
What conclusions were made from Ainsworth's strange situation?
- Significant individual differences between infants
- Most American children are securely attached
- Distinct association between the mothers behaviour and the infants attachment type, which suggests that mothers behaviour may be more important in determining attachment type
70
Who were the psychologists that studied cultural variations in attachment?
Van Ljendoorn and Kroonenberg
71
What was Van Ljendoorn and Kroonenberg's aim?
- Wanted to see if Ainsworths classifications of types of attachments were universal or culture bound
- To investigate attachment type both between and within cultures by comparing findings of studies using the strange situation in different cultures
72
Describe Van Ljendoorn and Kroonenberg's procedure
- they conducted a meta-analysis
- they reviewed 32 worldwide studies involving 8 countries
- over 2000 strange situation classifications (in a 12 marker you would need to describe the strange situation procedure)
- these studies have been conducted by other researchers and Van Ljendoorn and Kroonenberg compared studies
73
Describe Van Ljendoorn and Kroonenberg's findings
- In all countries they found secure to be the most common e.g Britain = 75%
- Differences between countries for example West Germany has the highest rates of avoidance = 35%
- The two Asian countries (Japan&China) had one of the highest rates of resistant (Japan=27%, China=25%)
74
AO3: Simonella et al, supporting study for cultural variations in attachment-procedure
- An Italian study
| - Assessed 76, 12-month-old babies using the strange situation
75
AO3: Simonella et al, supporting study for cultural variations in attachment-findings
- 50% secure
- 36% insecure-avoidant
- 14% insecure-resistant
76
AO3: Simonella et al, supporting study for cultural variations in attachment-conclustions
- that the lower rates of secure attachments were due to the increasing number of working mothers
- that cultural changes can make dramatic differences to the patterns of attachment types
77
AO3: Cultural variations in attachment- cross cultural psychology includes the idea of etic and emic
- etic means cultural universals (general laws to apply to everyone, across cultures)
- emic means cultural uniqueness (specific to a culture)
- the strange situation was designed by an American (Ainsworth) based on British theory (Bowlby's) There is a question on wether Anglo American theories can be applied to other cultures
- trying to apply a theory or technique designed for one culture to another is known as imposed etic
78
A03: Cultural variations in attachment: Grossmann and Grossmann
- considered the idea of imposed etic and the strange situation in relation to German findings
- rather than being viewed as insecurely attached because babies seemed indifferent at the return of the primary caregiver, this could be considered independence rather than avoidance and therefore a positive trait within that cultural context
79
A03: Cultural variations in attachment and Ainsworths strange situation, Takahashi
- suggested the test may be culture bound
- he noted that the test doesn't really work in Japan as Japanese mothers are rarely separated from their babies (due to very traditional gender roles) so the babies become very anxious at separation as to be expected
- he also said that the Japanese mothers would rush in and scoop the baby up at the reunion stage meaning it was hard to observe the baby's response
80
A03- Ainsworth's strange situation: Brick et al- STRENGTH
-looked at inter rater reliability in a team of strange situation observers and found agreement on attacment type of 94% of the tested babies
81
A03- Main and Soloman
- found a minority of children do not fit into any of the 3 categories outlined by Ainsworth et al
- they called this fourth type as a typical attachment 'disorganised attachment'
- these children displayed an odd mix of resistant and avoidant attachments
82
What was the aim of Bowlby's 44 Juvenile thieves experiment?
To test the maternal deprivation hypothesis
83
Describe Bowlby's 44 Juvenile thieves method
- Bowlby decided to compare 44 Juvenile thieves with another group of emotionally disturbed teenagers who were not thieves
- The children interviewed ranged in age from 5 to 16
- In addition Bowlby diagnosed 14 of the thieves as affectionless psychopaths, individuals who particularly lacked emotional sensitivity
- The children and their parents were interviewed by Bowlby and his associates
- Information was collected about their early life experiences, with particular attention paid to early separations
84
Describe the findings of Bowlby's 44 Juvenile thieves experiment
- The affectionless thieves had experienced frequent early separations from their mothers. The figures show that 86% of the affectionless thieves experienced frequent separations compared to 17% of the other thieves
- Furthermore almost none of the control participants experienced early separations, wheras 39% of the thieves had experienced early separations
- These early separations often consisted of continuous or repeated stays in Foster homes or hospitals when the children were often visited by their families
85
Describe the conclusions of Bowlby's 44 Juvenile thieves experiment
- link between separation and becoming a thief (i.e someone lacking a social conscience)
- hey also suggest that early separations are linked to affectionless psychopathy. In other words lack of continuous care may well cause emotional malajustment, especially in the form of affectionless psychopathy
86
Why are we interested in studying maternal deprivation?
-In the 1930's and 40s psychologists were studying children who had experienced prolonged separation from their families, these children were profoundly disturbed and lagged behind their peers in intellectual development
87
Maternal deprivation: What did Spitz and Wolf observe?
Observed 100 normal children who were placed in institutions, they became depressed within a few months
88
Maternal deprivation: What did Skodak and Skeels observe?
Found institutionalised children scored badly on IQ tests. When transferred to a institution with better emotional care their IQ improves by up to 30 points
89
Maternal deprivation: what is privation?
When they are never able to form an attachment
90
What is Bowlby's Maternal deprivation theory?
- Bowlby's first theory
- Focus on the consequences of deprivation of maternal care
- stated that prolonged emotional deprivation would have long term consequences for emotional development
91
What is the difference between separation and deprivation?
SEPARATION means the child is not in the presence of their primary attachment figure, but has good substitute care.
DEPRIVATION is when they lack their primary attachment figure and are not given substitute care
92
How can damage from maternal deprivation be avoided?
| -how/why?
If suitable substitute care is given, this substitute care avoids separation being deprivation
-because although Bowlby's hypothesis suggests that if you are denied mother love for prolonged time you become emotionally disturbed, this only applies to the critical period (before 2 1/2 years), this was also only apply if there is no mother substitute.
93
What are the 2 effects of maternal deprivation?
1. ) Intellectual development
| 2. ) Emotional development
94
What is intellectual development
If children are deprived of maternal/ emotional care for too long during the critical period they suffer mental retardation, characterised by a very low IQ. Skodak and Skeels showed that those in institutional care scored badly on IQ tests. When transferred to an institution with better emotional care their IQ improves by up to 30 points.
95
What is emotional development
If a child lacks maternal care then their emotional development may be affected. They may suffer from affectionless psychopathy which is an inability to experience guilt or emotions for others This prevents them from developing normal relationships and is associated with criminality
96
What does the 'PDD' model of attachment stand for?
- Protest
- Despair
- Detachment
97
Robertson and Robertson-PDD model of deprivation /disruption of attachment
John- 17 month old. Mother in hospital for 10 days. In childrens home, no substitute care. Cried when mother left but got no attention. Went quiet and rocked back and fourth with teddy. When mother came back his attachment was now insecure
Jane-17 month old. Mother in hospital for 10 days. Looked after by the Robertson's. They kept her routines the same, brought toys from home and encouraged dad to visit. She was kept in a state of manageable anxiety and was still securely attached when her mother came back.
98
AO3: Maternal deprivation theory: Lewis
- replicated Bowlby's 44 thieves study but looked at 500 young people
- she found that a history of prolonged separation from the mother did not produce criminality, forming close relationships
- this suggests that other factors may affect the outcome of early maternal deprivation
99
AO3: Maternal deprivation theory: Koluchova
- reported the case of twin boys from Czechoslovakia whose step-mother kept them locked in a cupboard from 18 months to 7 years old
- they were then looked after by 2 loving adults and the twins appeared to recover fully
- this suggests that Bowlby's ideas of a 'critical period' may be more of a sensitive period and that permanent damage from inevitable
100
AO3: Maternal deprivation theory: Supporting studies: Harlow's Monkeys
- Harlow's monkeys experienced maternal deprivation
- they were separated from biological mother and placed with a 'cloth' mother rather than 'wire' mother
- long term was the they neglected and attacked their own young
- they also failed to show 'normal' social behaviours such as aggression, rocking and self- harming
- This demonstrates long-term effects of maternal deprivation. therefore supporting Bowlby's MDT
101
What is institutionalism?
A term for the effects of living in an institution such as a hospital or orphanage continuously for long periods of time
102
Describe effects of institutionalism
- tend to develop physical, intellectual and/or social characteristics
- e.g head banging, rocking, staring etc.
103
How did Rutter explain the difference between deprivation and privation
- Deprivation occurs when a child has formed an important attachment and is then separated
- Privation on the other hand occurs when a child has never formed a close relationship with anyone
104
How may you study privation?
-Consider the effects of institutionalisation, in situations where infants have never had the opportunity to form any attachments
105
What are the type of privation studies like?
-Large scale, longitudinal studies which aim to follow the same children over a long period of time to collect reliable information linking early experiences to later outcomes
106
What was Rutter's aim?
-To investigate the effects of institutionalisation on children in relation to attachment formation
107
Describe rutter et als procedure
- inc. 165 Romanin children who spent their times in Romanian institutions and therefore suffered the effects of institutionalisation
- 111 were adopted before 2
- 54 adopted before 2
- adoptees tested at regular intervals (4,6,11 and 15 years) to assess physical, cognitive and social development
- interviews with parents and teachers
- their progress was compared to a control group of 52 British children adopted in the UK before the age of 6 months
108
Describe Rutter et als findings
- at the time of adoption, the Romanian orphans lagged behind their British counterparts on all measures of development
- they were smaller, weighed less and were "mentally retarded"
- by the age of 4, some of the children had caught up with their British counterparts
- many of the infants adopted after 6 months showed disinhibited attachment and had problems with peer relationships
109
What were Rutter et al's conclusions?
- The long term effects of institutionalisation may be less severe than once thought IF children have the opportunity to form attachments
- However when children do not form attachments, then the consequences are likely to be severe
110
What was Zeanah et als aim?
To study the attachment formation of institutionalised children
111
Describe Zeneah et als procedure
- used the strange situation to assess the attachment type of 95 children aged 12-31 months who had spent most of their lives in institutional care (90% on average)
- control group of 50 children who have never lived in an institution
- carers were asked about disinhibited attachment
112
Zeneah et al: What is disinhibited attachment?
- a form of insecure attachment
- unusual social behaviour including clingy, attention-seeking behaviour directed inappropriately at all adults
- usually due to having multiple carers
113
Describe Zeneah et als findings
- 19 % of the institutionalised group were securely attached
- 74% of the control group were securely attached
- disinhibited attachment applied to 44% of the institutionalised children compared to 20% of the controls
114
Describe Zeneah et als conclusions
-Institutionalisation impacts the long-term attachment formation of children
115
Rutter et al: what is physical underdevelopment?
- children are usually smaller and weigh less
| - a lack of emotional care rather than poor nourishment is the cause of 'deprivation dwarfism'
116
Describe intellectual under functioning
-cognitive development is affected by emotional deprivation however it can be reversed if given good substitute care as shown by Skodak and Skeels
117
Describe a study for poor parenting
- Quinton et al compared 50 women who were in children homes when young with 50 'normal' women.
- When in their 20s the institutionalised women were also experiencing difficulties as parents, their children were also more likely to be in care themselves
118
A03, Romanian orphan studies: real world applications
- helped us to improve the lives of children put into care
- the Romanian orphans highlighted the importance of early adoption. Previously mothers were encouraged to nurse the baby for a significant period after birth
- by the time the baby was adopted the sensitive period may have passed
- today most babies are adopted within a week allowing new adoptive parents to form attachments in the critical period
- with early adoption, adoptive parents are as attached as biological parents
119
A03, Romanian orphan studies: Longitudinal research showed improvements over time
- these studies into Romanian orphans are longitudinal in nature. This means the same children are followed over a long period of time with multiple measurements to show progress over time
- research takes a long time and requires a lot of planning however the benefits are large, without these studies we may assume there are very severe effects of care at 4 years which continue
- wheras studying the children for a long time means we are able to monitor how the effects decrease with age and high quality care
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A03, Romanian orphan studies: A lack of emotional care isn't everything
- the Romanian orphans faced more than just emotional deprivation
- the physical conditions they were kept in were appalling
- the lack of cognitive stimulation would also affect their cognitive development
- it is likely that they suffered such negative effects of institutionalisation when young due to a combination of factors, rather than just a lack of emotional care
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Describe Scroufes research into childhood friendships
- found continuity between early attachment and later social behaviour
- children who were more secure as infants were rated as more socially competent in childhood, were more popular, less isolated and more empathetic
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Why did Scroufe find that children who were more secure as infants rating as more socially competent, more popular, less isolated and more empathetic
Because the internal working model gave them higher expectations of others as friendly and trusting, establishing them to form relationships more easily
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Describe Hazan and Shavers procedure
- they placed the 'love quiz' in the Rocky mountain news
- The quiz had three sections:
1. ) assessing the current or most important relationship
2. )Assessing the general love experiences such as numbers of partners and views on life
3. ) Assessing the attachment type
- this helped them identify the current and childhood relationship and attachment types
- they analysed 620 responses from a representative cross section of people
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Describe Hazan and Shavers results
- They found that the prevalence of attachment styles was that similar to that found in infants by Ainsworth. 56% was secure, 25% were avoidant and 19% were resistant
- they found that there was a positive attachment type and love. Those with secure attachments were happy, friendly and trusting in relationships
- securely attached people as infants also reported more enduring relationship (10 years rather than 5 years for resistant)
- There was a correlation between IWM and attachment type, those with a secure attachment had a more positive IWM
- "romantic love can last over time and not fade"-agreed by 59% of secure compared to only 41% of resistant
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What aspects of life can the internal working model affect?
- poor parenting
| - mental health
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How can the internal working model affect poor parenting?- use a study to support this
- Harlows monkeys showed a link between poor attachment and parenting difficulties
- Quinton et al also showed this in humans. A lack of internal working model means people have no reference point to inform future relationships with their own children
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How can the internal working model affect mental health?
-A lack of attachment in the critical period leads to a lack of the IWM, children with attachment disorders have no preferred attachment figure and cannot interact with others. This is now recognised as a condition in the DSM-attachment disorder
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A03: IWM and child relationships: Simson et al
- Assessed infants attachment type at 1 year old. they then reassured these individuals as children, teenagers and adults
- they found that secure infants had a higher competence as children
- those rated as secure also had closer friends at 16 and were more emotionally attached to romantic parters as adults
- This supports the work by Hazan and Shaver and is more evidence for the internal working model and continuity hypothesis
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A03: IWM and child relationships: Cause and effect (innate temperament)
- it is possible that both attachment and later love style are both caused by another factor such as innate temperament
- Kagen's temperament hypothesis suggests that an infants attachment style is based on their innate personality (temperament)
- The infants personality may also explain their success in adult relationships
- In this case, the temperament is the intervening variable
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A03: IWM and child relationships: Cause and effect (Clarke & Clarke)
- Clarke & Clarke described the influence of infant attachments as probabilistic
- They are at higher risk but are not doomed to have poor future relationships
- Emphasising the risk from infanthood could create further problems for the individual
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A03: IWM and child relationships: Retrospective classification relies too heavily on memory
- Hazan and Shaver's study is not longitudinal, participants were not assessed as infants and then again as adults
- The research is asking them respospectively to answer questions on their early lives in order to assess their attachment style. Such recollections may be flawed and incorrect because past memories are not always accurate
- HOWEVER other researchers have carried out longitudinal research which supports Hazan and Shaver. Simson et al assessed infants attachment type at 1 year old and found secure infants had higher social competence as children, closer friends at 16 and were more emotionally attached to romantic parters as adults
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A03: The idea is too deterministic
- The research into the effects of the IWM suggest that early experiences have a fixed effect on later adult relationships
- Therefore if you have insecure attachments as an infant you are doomed to experience more emotionally unsatisfactory, more untrusting, and more happy relationships as an adult
- This is not the case as researchers have found plenty of evidence of instances were participants had an insecure attachment as infants but went on to have happy adult relationships
- This means the theory is too deterministic as an individuals past does not determine the definite future course of their relationships
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What are the 4 stages of attachment?
1. )Indiscriminate attachment
2. )The beginnings of attachment
3. )Discriminate attachment
4. )Multiple attachments
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What is indiscriminate attachment? (stage 1)
- from birth up till about 2 months infants produce similar responses to all objects wether they are animate or inanimate
- towards the end of this period, infants are beginning to show a greater preference towards social stimuli, such as smiling face and be more content when they are with people
- during this period reciprocity and interactional synchrony play a role in establishing attachments
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What is the beginnings of attachment? (stage 2)
- around the age of 4 months infants become more social
- they prefer human company to inanimate objects and can distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar people
- however they are still relatively easily comforted by anyone and do not show anxiety with strangers (stranger anxiety). The most distinctive feature of this phase is their general sociability (enjoyment of being with people)
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What is discriminate attachment? (stage 3)
- by 7 months old most infants begin to show a distinctly different sort of protest when one particular person puts them down (separation anxiety), they show equal joy at reunion and are most comforted by that person, they are said to have formed a specific attachment to the one person (their primary attachment figure)
- around this time infants also display stranger anxiety
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Discriminate attachment (stage 3)- Schaffer and Emerson
- Schaffer and Emerson found that primary attachments were not always formed with the person who spent the most time with the child. They observed that intensely attached infants had mothers who responded quickly are sensitively to their signals and offered their child the most interaction. Infants who were poorly attached had mothers that failed to interact
- quality of relationship, not quantity
- in 65% of children the first specific attachment was the mother and in a further 30% the mother was the first joint object of attachment
- fathers were rarely the first sole object of attachment (3%)
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What is multiple attachments (stage 4)
- very soon after the main attachment is formed, the infant also develops a wider circle of multiple attachments depending on how many consistent relationships she/he has
- Schaffer and Emerson found found that within one month of first becoming attached, 29% of infants had multiple attachments to someone else e.g siblings
- these are called secondary attachments. Infants also display separation anxiety in these relationships
- within six months multiple attachments had risen to 78%
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A03: the development of attachment: unreliable date
-the data collected by Scaffer & Emerson may be unreliable because it was based on their mothers reports of their infants. Some mothers might have been less sensitive to their infants protests and therefore were less likely to report them. What is particularly important is that this would create a systematic bias which would challenge the validity of the data
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A03: the development of attachment: biased sample
- the sample was biased in a number of ways
- 1st it was from a working class population and thus the findings may apply to that social group and not to others.
- 2nd the sample was from the 1960's. Parental care has changed significantly since that time. More women go to work so many children are cared for outside of the home or fathers stay at home and become the main carer
- research shows that the number of Fathers who choose to stay at home and care for their children has quadrupled over the past 25 years, it has likely if a similar study to Schaffer & Emerson was conducted today it is likely the findings would be different
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A03: the development of attachment: cultural variations
- 2 cultures: individualist (Britain and USA) /collectivist
- individualist focus on individuals, collectivist on the needs of groups, they may also share possessions and child care-therefore we would expect multiple attachments to be more common
- research supports this e.g Sagi et al compared attachments in infants raised in communal environments with infants in family raised sleeping environments. In Kibbutz children spend most of their time in a community childrens home called a metapelet inc. night time
- closeness of attachment was almost twice as common in family based arrangements than in a communal environment- this suggests that the stage model applies specifically to individualist cultures
