Exam #2 Attachement

Question 1

Freud - early thoughts

Answer 1

feeding
- mom satisfies baby’s oral needs
- first relationship is a model for others
- children just need basic “animal” needs to be met

Question 2

behaviorism

Answer 2

• baby is hungry → hungry drive is satisfied → baby becomes conditioned to associate mother with food
• positive associations lead to attachment
• cuddling = coddling

Question 3

Harry Harlow - monkey study

Answer 3

Feeding is not sufficient - “creature comfort”
Raised monkeys in different scenarios with different mother replacements
Raised monkeys without mothers or other monkeys = maladjusted socially throughout their lives
Secure base - when baby monkies were scared they run to their mother to be comfortable
Only hungry drove the baby monkies to switch from terry cloth mother to wired mother with food
Without the terry cloth mother the monkey is stressed and scared with it they were more normal

Question 4

ethology - Lorenz

Answer 4

• study of animal behavior and its adaptive functions
• imprinting → innate signaling mechanism elicits behavior ex. ducks and geese follow first large object they see
• human attachment is not as simple but its adaptive
• biological mechanisms → hormone activation = oxytocin makes female animals more motherly

Question 5

ethological theory

Answer 5

Ethology: attachment is adaptive
Psychoanalysis: attachment provides model for future relationships

Question 6

stranger anxiety

Answer 6

fear of unfamiliar adults, peaks at 8-10 months

Question 7

separation anxiety + greetings

Answer 7

don’t want a caregiver to leave, peaks at 14-20 months
excited to see caregiver when he/she returns

Question 8

secure base behavior + social referencing

Answer 8

using caregiver as a “base of operations”
looking to others when unsure

Question 9

Bowlby attachment phase: pre-attachment (birth - 6 weeks)

Answer 9

infants’ innate signals (ex crying) bring people to them

Question 10

Bowlby attachment phase: attachment-in-the-making (6 weeks to 6-8 months)

Answer 10

preference for familiar people

Question 11

Bowlby attachment phase: clear-cut attachment (6-8 months to 1 1/2 years)

Answer 11

infants actively seek contact with caregivers
separation anxiety
secure base for exploration

Question 12

Bowlby attachment phase: reciprocal relationships (1 1/2 years on)

Answer 12

infants make organized efforts to be near their parents
decrease in separation anxiety

Question 13

Bowlby attachment phase: internal working model of attachment

Answer 13

outcome of attachment phases
mental representation of self in context of others

Question 14

Mary Ainsworth’s research

Answer 14

Strange Situation procedure to assess attachment
Put children in an unfamiliar context likely to heighten a child’s need for a parent
Observers rated children on a behavioral scale

Question 15

secure (50-60%)

Answer 15

Explore freely in the caregiver’s presence
Often visibly upset when the caregiver leaves
Greet caregiver warmly at the reunion
Parents - respond readily to their children’s signals

Question 16

insecure-resistant (10%)

Answer 16

Sometimes called ambivalent
Thoroughly distressed by separations
Don’t settle easily upon reunions
Mix proximity-seeking and angry behaviors
Parents - inconsistent in caregiving

Question 17

insecure-avoidant (15%)

Answer 17

Sometimes called anxious
Show little or no distress upon separation
Avoid contact with caregiver upon reunion
May show more positive behavior w/ stranger
Physiological reactions
Parents - indifferent and emotionally unavailable

Question 18

disorganized/disoriented (15%)

Answer 18

Sometimes called distressed
Confused, contradictory behaviors
Dazed, fearful facial expressions
Frozen postures
Parents - tend to be frightened by or confused by their mothers, abusive or mentally unwell parents

Question 19

cultural differences in attachment

Answer 19

Similarities in strange situation behavior in China, Western Europe, and parts of Africa
Japanese infants
Behave differently because they have no insecure/avoidant behavior because they are with their caregiver 24/7
Northern Germany
Higher percentage of avoidant children
Cultural influences on types of child behavior valued

Question 20

temperament + attachement

Answer 20

Influences parent’s behavior and security of child’s attachment
Parents may be frustrated by difficult children
Probelmatic or abnormal - elicit negative responses from parents
More likely to be insecurely attached

Question 21

long term effects of attachment

Answer 21

Securely attached -more likely to have positive internal working models of attachment, learn to express emotions in an appropriate way
Avoidant attachment - learn to inhibit emotional expressiveness and not to seek comfort from other people, because their parents are non-responsive
Ambivalently attached children - may give conflicting signals, seem overly dependent