Attachment

Attachment

A close emotional bond between two individuals in which each individual sees the other as essential for their own emotional security

How is attachment characterised

by a need for proximity ,separation distress and secure base behaviour( where we need to make regular contact with them )

Care-giver interactions

Reciprocity

International synchrony

-suggested these interactions have important functions for child development

interactional synchrony

When the caregiver and infant mirror what the other doing in terms of their facial expressions and body movements

Reciprocity

Refers to mutual responsiveness where infant and care giver take turns to communicate respond to signals

Tronicks still face experiment

Mother was initially responsive but then shows still face and stops responding to baby as they try to communicate

Findings: baby tries to get response and shows distress

What does tronicks still face experiment show

Shows infants are active Interactions

• they can engage in and shape interactions

• How needed interactions is. ( importance of reciprocity)

Meltzoff’s and moore’s research into care giver interactions

They studied interactional synchrony with babies 6-27days

• exposed babies to 3 different facial gestures and recorded responses

What were 3 facial gestures babies were exposed to in meltozof’s and moores’s study

Tounge out, ‘o’ and pursed lips

What did meltzoff and Moore find?

Infants as young as 2 weeks old imitated specific facial and hand gestures

A- suggests they are not passive but instead too communicate in interaction

Research into caregiver-infant interactions include:

tronicks still face experiment

meltzoff’s and moore’s study into interactional synchrony

Weaknesses of research into caregiver-infant interactions

Difficulty observing a baby’s behaviour, does not tell us the developmental importance

What makes it difficult to observe a baby’s behaviour?

they lack coordination and mostly immobile and so responses may be hard to interpret e.g smiling or passing wind? Is behaviour intentional?

-They also cannot speak to let us know so we have to infer

=reduces validity of findings

How does research into caregiver-infant interactions lack explanation of developmental importance

the ideas of I.C and reciprocity give name to the observable patterns but does not touch on the purpose of this behaviour and why it is important for children

What does the lack of explanation of its developmental importance suggest about research into care giver interactions

that this research alone is not sufficient in order to truly understand the interactions/not useful in understanding importance on child development

What are schaffer’s stages of attachment(and ages it develops)

1-asocial stage(first few weeks)

2-indiscriminate attachment(from around 2 months to 7 months)

3-specific attachment (from around 7 months)

4-multiple attachment(shortly after specific attachments are formed)

Asocial Stage

-babies will form bonds with and respond to both human and inanimate objects similarly

-they do though prefer to be with humans rather than obejcts

-in this stage they can be comforted by anyone

Indiscriminate Attachment

-babies start to show more obvious social behaviours e.g smile/laugh

-clear preference for over people rather than objects

-may show preference for familiar adults but still will accept cuddles from anyone;no separation or stranger anxiety

Specific Attachment

child starts to show preference for one adult(primary caregiver)

-will start to show stranger anxiety and separation anxiety

Primary Care Giver

not always the person who they spend the most time with but whoever responds to baby’s signal and interacts the most

Who is usually primary care giver

mother , in 65% of cases (schaffer)

Multiple Attachment

begin to form secondary attachments

-behaviour is extended to others they spend time with:dad,auntie,grandma ec

Schaffer and Emerson study

They did a longitudinal study with 60 babies from working class families and Glasgow

Schaffer and Emerson study(procedure)

Observed infants and babies at home

-Mothers were interviewed about every day separations in order to measure separation anxiety

-Also measure stranger anxiety by researchers approaching the infant

(Interactions recorder)

How often were the infants observed In Schaeffer and Emerson study

Every month for the first year and again at 18 months

What everyday separation is when mothers interviewed about?

7 in total

-for example , when parent leaves the room

Schaffers and Emerson’s findings

By 6months…

By 7 months…

By 10 months…

What does Schaffer and Emerson find about the babies by the time they were six months?

By six months, 50% of babies started showing separation anxiety towards the primary caregiver(usually mother)

What did schaffer and Emerson find out about the babies by the time they were seven months?

By seven months, most babies attached to the mother but had not developed attachment to the father until around 18 months

What does schaffer and Emerson find out about the babies by the time they were ten months?

By 10 months, most babies had multiple attachments(to siblings etc),( 29% developed within a month on Primary/specific attachment )

Strengths of Schaffer and Emerson study into the stages of attachment

Real life setting, longitudinal study and practical application

How does Schaffer and Emerson study take place in a real life setting?

Infants were observed at home(high mundane realism), not recorded etc(this would have distracted/caused anxiousness)

-this allows for natural day-to-day occurrences

A= so we can assume that behaviour is natural and so findings are valid

How is Schaffer and Emerson study longitudinal study?

Observation was overtime; They observed every month for the first year and again after 18 months

-by following up same infants this removes the effects of confounding variables such as particular participant variables e.g on one particular day baby might be sick and display more signs of attachment and separation anxiety

= valid findings

How does research into stages of attachment have practical application

In daycare care example daycare during indiscriminate stage setting in is usually straightforward, unlike specific stage.-child can be difficult with the adult hence this could explain settling in days.

A-this can be planned accordingly using stages of attachment

Weaknesses of schaffers and Emerson’s research into the stages of attachment

Problems with studying asocial stage

How does schaffer & Emerson’s study lack temporary validity?

The study was on the 60s so things would have been much different

-for example, women typically stayed at home and so took on a roll of the primary caregiver which could explain why an attachment was developed with the mother first as the PCG

A= so cannot apply findings to today’s infants

Counter argument to external validity in Schaffer & Emersons research

May have other issues with validity in other ways

-population and temporal validity=not generalisable

+mother reporting- bias?(e.g wouldn’t want to say their baby is anxious…)

How does Schaffer and Emerson study lack population validity

Sample was 60 babies from working class families in Glasgow

-but may vary in different cultures for example infants from collectivist cultures may development multiple actions earlier

A= so could not be applied to different cultures or even other social classes

How may it be difficult to study the a social stage?

to study we look at interactional synchrony and personality but babies are poor coordination and generally immobile

-So we can’t be sure if their behaviour is intentional or what it is there doing e,g smiling or passing wind

-may be subtle= so hard for mother to observe and report back

A= this means we have to infer in order to draw conclusions which gives the results a lack of reliability

What does early research suggest about the role of the father

That they are less of a care giver

What does Schaffer and Emerson’s research suggest about the role of the father

That they are unlikely to be the infants first attachment, suggesting their role is less important

• 75% of babies only formed attachment with their father by 18 months compared to 7 months for mothers

• The father was only the first attachment is 3% of cases (27% of cases joint first with mother)

Who did research on role of the father

Schaffer & Emerson, grossmann and field

Grossmans study (2002) into the role of the father

Did a longitudinal study where babies were studied until teens

-He observed both parents behaviour and its the relationship to quality of later attachment

• The attachment to mothers was related to adolescent attachment, while fathers was not related

• But the quality of play with father was related to adolescent attachment

What did Grossman Find?

• The attachment to mothers was related to adolescent attachment, while fathers was not related

• But the quality of play with father was related to adolescent attachment

What did grossman’s research suggest

Attachment to father is less important in emotional development but has a different role that is more to do with play and stimulation

Fields research into the role of the father

Filmed face to face interactions of 4 months babies with their PCG father, PCG mothers and SCG fathers

What did field find

• Found that PCG fathers interacted and spent more time(like PCG mothers) ,smiling imitating etc, than SCG fathers

What can we conclude from fields research

That fathers too have the potential to be the emotion focused care giver and provide responsiveness required for a close emotional attachment (can adopt this role when taking on the PCG role although associated with mother)

What does fields research show

That when fathers take on the role of PCG they can in fact adopt the emotional role even though it is typically associated with mother

LImitations of research into the role of the father

Confusion over research question, findings vary depending on methodology used, economic implications

Strengths of research into the role of the father

Application in real life thats useful

How is there confusion over the research question(into the role of the father)

lack of clarity of ‘what is the role of the father’

-some like field investigate the role as a PCG while others like grossman investigate whether the fathers role is distinct from the mothers

Why is it a problem that there is confusion over the role of the father research question?

A=it is difficult to compare research and address the role of the father as different things are investigated/found

-so depends on what aspect we are looking at

How do the findings in role of the father research vary depending on methodology used

For example , grossman did longitudinal study which found the father has a distinct & important role

BUT mcallum and golombok (fact study)found that those with same sex parent (or single parent) dont develop differently

A= distinctive role?question is left unclear/unanswered

Counter argument to the fact findings of research into role of the father vary

These lines of research may not be in conflict

-may play distinctive role in heterosexual families but in single-mother/lesbian-parent families may adapt to accommodate this role

=clear answer(distinct but can adapt)

How can research into the role of the father have economic implications(counter argument to offering advice)

Research such as fields suggesting fathers can be PCG may encourage more fathers to stay at home and not contribute to economy e.g more maternity leave

A= can negatively impact workforce

How can the research into the role of father be helpful in real life

can offer advice to/reassure parents(may agonise over certain decisions ) e.g who should stay home, same sex parents(should they have kids at all?)= stress

e.g fields shows fathers can be PCG which instils confidence as sometimes they may be better off financially if mother works

Animal studies

Looks at the formation of early bonds between non human parents and their offspring , can help us to understand human attachment

Who conducted the main animal studies we look at in psychology

Lorenz- geese

Harlow-baby rhesus monkeys

Lorenz research (imprinting)

Randomly divided goose eggs ( half hatched with mother in natural environment and half hatched in incubator where the first moving object they saw was Lorenz)

Findings: (control)group that was hatched with mother followed her whilst the incubator group followed Lorenz everywhere=imprinting

Imprinting

Where(bird) species that are mobile from birth attach to and follow the first moving object they see

How does Lorenz reference the critical period when talking about imprinting?

Lorenz identified critical period in which imprinting needs take place

-He found that if imprinting did not occur within that time the chicks did not attach themselves to a mother figure

How did Lorenz investigate sexual imprinting?

Investigated the relationship between imprinting and adult mate preferences

study by Lorenz (1952) a peacock reared in the in the reptile house of a zoo where first moving object seen was giant tortoises=bird would only direct courtship behaviour towards giant tortoises(if imprinted on human would often display courtship behaviour towards humans)

=sexual imprinting

Harlow’s research

Looked at the importance of contact comfort(1958)

-16 baby Reese‘s monkeys were separated from their mothers and caged from infancy, then given substitutes mothers

- in one condition, it was a wire mother who dispensed milk whilst in other it was a cloth covered mother

What does Harlows findings then suggest about the role of comfort in attachment

This shows that infant primates need contact comfort more than food and that this is more important for attachment

What did Harlow find

Findings: monkeys preferred the cloth mother are spending 17 to 18 hours a day with cloth compared to only one hour with the wire, Also scared (by noisy mechanical toy)it was found they ran to cloth mother for comfort

What else did Harlow also look at?

The impact of separation on later attachment( the maternally deprived monkey as adults)

What did Harlow find about the maternally deprived monkeys adults?

The monkeys read with the wire mothers were highly dysfunctional in adulthood

E.g aggressive and less sociable, They had issues with meeting and some even neglected their own children(some also attacking and even killing them )

What did Harlow suggest about the critical period when it came to the monkeys?

That a mother figure had to be introduced to a young monkey within 10 days for an attachment to form

-after this time attachment was impossible and the damage done by early deprivation becomes irreversible

What’s the limitation of both animal studies?

Cannot be generalised to humans

• Lorenz-The mammal attachment system in humans is different to birds and more complex

• Harlow- use of monkeys which is are different to humans (human Brian and behaviour more complex)

  = Cannot necessarily apply findings the usefulness of research is limited

How may a human attachment system be different/more complex

e.g may have emotional attachment ,we have language to describe experiences and conscious thought etc

Why is Regolin’s and Vallortigara useful

Support the idea that young animals are born with an innate mechanism to imprint on moving objects present in the critical window of development, as predicted by Lorenz

strength of animal studies(Lorenz)

Research support of Lorenz study

How does Lorenz’s study have research support?

Regolin and vallortigara (1995)

-Chicks were exposed to simple shape combinations e.g Triangle with rectangle in front, A range of combinations for them moved in front of them, but they followed the original more closely

Strength of animal studies(Harlow)

Real world application

How does harlow’s animal study have real world application?

The research was significant in understanding how a lack of bonding experience can be a risk factor in child development, this allowed for intervention in order to prevent poor outcomes(e.g zoos and breeding programmes improve by providing attachment figure)

= Demonstrates how the research also has practical value

Limitation of animal studies(Harlow)

Unethical

How can Harlows animal study be considered unethical?

Some may argue it could cause psychological harm as the monkeys were deprived from maternal care and social contact which led to some killing their own offspring etc

= This shows how the deprivation caused harmful long-term effects which are irreversible

Learning Theory

An explanation of attachment that emphasise the role of food in developing an attachment

-uses the principles of classical conditioning and operant conditioning

Classical conditioning in the learning theory

Describes how an attachment could be formed if the caregiver is associated with food

-showing how the caregiver being associated with food ( UCS) causing a satisfied baby(UCR) becomes the caregiver (CS) causing a satisfied baby(CR)

Operant conditioning in the learning theory

Operant conditioning in this case explains why babies cry for comfort(because behaviour is being reinforced)

Positive reinforcement in the learning theory

The infant cries= caregiver feeds them/responds= Infant stop crying

Negative reinforcement in the learning theory

Applies to caregiver(avoiding crying baby)

-Continues to feed and attend to the baby in order to prevent crying

How does the learning theory look at the attachment as a secondary drive?

The theory draws on the concept of drive reduction

-The hunger (biological motivator)can be seen as a primary drive and the attachment is secondary drive ( it is learnt that the caregiver and the primary drive are associated)

What is strength of the learning theory?

It has face validity

How does the learning theory have face validity?

It makes sense that babies cry more when they learn to get attention and ultimately food

= So it’s easy to apply to life

What are the weaknesses of the learning theory?

Counter evidence from animal studies , counter evidence from studies on humans and alternative theories that could also explain the attachment

How do animal studies act as counter evidence to the learning theory?

• Lorenz-the geese imprinted on first moving object, regardless of whether associated with food

• Harlow-the monkey chose comfort, surrogate mother rather than the wire mother with milk

  = This highlights that there may be factors other than association with food that are also important or maybe even more important

Which studies on humans act as counter evidence for the learning theory ?

Schaffers and Emerson’s- they found babies tended to form main attachment to mother, regardless if she was the main feeder

Isabella:Found the interactional synchrony(whether there are high levels) predicted quality of attachment ,which are factors not related to feeding

= This food is not the main fat bum in the formation of attachment

What alternative theories could also explain attachment?

SLT

Who used SLT principles to explain attachment?

Hay and vespo

-Suggested that parents ‘model’ how to love by attachment behaviour such as hugging etc and reinforce attachment behaviour by showing approval when they show these behaviours(e.g cuddles, smiles)

=learning theory is an incomplete explanation as other theories also makes sense.

Why does the SLT perspective of attachment have a further advantage as an explanation?

As it is based around the two way interaction between baby and adult so it fits better with research into the importance of reciprocity

Bowlby’s monotropic theory

An evolutionary explanation that attachment is innate and crucial for infant survival

What are the five key ideas of bowlby’s monotropic theory?(ASCMI)

Attachment is ADAPTIVE

Display of SOCIAL RELEASERS

There is a CRITICAL PERIOD

The idea of MONOTROPY

Reference to the INTERNAL WORKING MODEL

What does Bowlby say about attachment being adaptive?

He suggests we are born to attach as it is adaptive, e.g crying or keep close proximity to gain attention= higher safety so increased survival( attachment evolved as a mechanism to increase survival of young animals)

What does Bowlby say about social releasers in the monotropic theory?

Signals displayed by infant that gain caregivers attention which unlocks the innate tendency in them to care for the infant

What does Bowlby say about the critical period in the monotropic theory

Critical period is typically described as a timeframe with a child needs to form an attachment if it is to form one at all(by 2.5 years)

BUT Bowlby suggest it is more of a ‘sensitive period’(where infants are maximally sensitive at 6months up to around 2 years) and attachments can still form later on with more effort

The idea of monotropy in Bowlby’s monotropic theory

He placed emphasis on a child’s attachment to just ONE particular caregiver which is different and more important than the others

Which two principles did Bowlby put forward to clarify the idea of monotropy?

The law of continuity and the law of accumulated separation

The law of continuity

States that the more constant and predictable the care is, the better the attachment