Early attachment later relationshisp ATM Flashcards
childhood relationships
affiliations with other people in childhood, including friends and classmates, and with adults such as teachers
adult relationships
the relationships the child goes on to have later in life as an adult
internal working model
our mental representation of the world
internal working model
Attachment and later relationships
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Bowlby said that a baby’s first attachment figure is a mental representation for all relationships in later life so the internal working model is a template for future childhood and adult relationships.
Loving first experience as baby → loving future relationship
Seeks out functional relationships and behave functionally within them (not being type A or C attachment)
relationships in childhood
Attachment type can be associated with the quality of peer relationships:
* Securely attachment form best quality childhood friendships
* Insecurely attached find friendship harder (Kerns)
Wilson and** Smith** predicted the bullying behaviour based on attachment type by using questionnaires in 196 children aged 7-11 in London.
* Securely attached uninvolved in bullying
* Insecure-avoidant likely to be victims
* Insecure-resistant likely to be bullies
Hazan and Shaver: Association between attachment and adult relationships (romantic relationships)
procedure and findings/conclusion
Procedure →
* Analysed 620 answers to love quiz in american newspaper
* 3 sections on quiz
* Current or most important relationship
* General love experiences
* Choose which statement best fits your feelings
Findings and conclusion →
* 52% securely attachment (good lasting relationships)
* 25% insecure-avoidant (jealousy and fear of intimacy)
* 19% insecure-resistant
McCarthy romantic relations
- 40 adult women who were assessed as babies for their early attachment type
- securely had best adult relationships
- Insecure-resistant problems maintaining friendships
- Avoidance struggled with intimacy and romantic relationships
Internal working models affect child’s ability to parent their own children:
* Base parenting style on internal working model
* Attachment type is passed down through generations
Bailey et al
assessed attachment by using the strange situation in 99 mothers to their babies and their own mothers. Most women had the same attachment type to both their babies and their mothers.
research support
strength
- **Fearon **and Roisman found that early attachment predicts later attachment, emotional well-being and attachment to own children
- Disorganised attachment is strongly associated with later mental disorder
Secure attachment as a baby has future advantages in development
research support counterpoint
limitation
- Not all evidence supports the link between attachment and development
- Regensburg longitudinal study (Becker-Stoll et al) observed 43 individuals from age 1 and at age 16 they were assessed with an interview and found no evidence of continuity
Extent that early attachment actually affects development is not clear as there might be other factors.
validity issues with retrospective studies
limitation
Assessed retrospectively
* Mostly not longitudinal research
* They normally just ask questions and this causes validity issues
* Asking questions relies on honesty
* Hard to know what is actually being assessed (early attachment or adult attachment)
* Regensburg longitudinal study
Measures of early attachment used in studies might confound with other factors that makes them meaningless
confounding variables
limitation
- Some studies assess attachment in babies (McCarthy)
- But these studies have validity problems
- Parenting style might influence attachment type and development
- Genetically-influenced personality may influence both factors
Can’t be sure that it is entirely attachment
