Attachment (unfinished)

An emotional bond between two people characterised by proximity seeking, distress on separation, and pleasure on reunion.

Attachment

Characteristics of attachment.

1. Seeking proximity

2. Separation

3. Pleasure when reunited

4. General orientation of behaviour towards the caregiver- reassured by closeness (secure base)

A person who looks after a child and meets their physical and emotional needs.

Caregiver

A two-way interaction between infant and caregiver where each responds to the other’s signals.

Reciprocity

When infant and caregiver mirror each other’s actions and emotions in a coordinated way.

Interactional synchrony

Attachments formed with people other than the primary attachment figure.

Multiple attachments

The person who provides the most emotional care and attention, not necessarily the one who feeds the infant.

Primary attachment figure

Studied imprinting in goslings and found attachment occurs during a critical period.

Lorenz (1935)- Brief overview

Lorenz Procedure and findings

1. Large clutch of greylag goose eggs

2. Half incubated by their mother (imprinted on her), others incubated by Lorenz artificially (imprinted on him)

3. C.G followed their mother, E.G followed Lorenz, even after mixing.

• 12-17 hr critical period, imprinted on who they saw first

• Suggests that imprinting is innate and genetic

Sexual imprinting - Lorenz 1952

• Peacock that had been reared in a reptile house of a zoo with giant tortoises

• Only direct courtship behaviour was towards the tortoise.

• However, this was not permenant

Lorenz Evaluation

Supporting. Guiton (1966):

• Chicks imprinted on an inflated yellow rubber glove.

• Sexually imprinted on said glove.

• This reversed after spending time with their own species

Undermining: Birds and humans are different species. Also, Lorenz and Guiton’s studies can be seen as unethical

An innate form of attachment occurring during a critical period shortly after birth.

Imprinting

A brief time window in which attachment must form or it may not form at all.

However, this was modified this to a “Sensitive period”, where a child is most sensitive at 2, but if no attachment then, it’s harder in later life.

Critical period

How long is the critical period in humans?

2-5 years

Attachment is formed through classical and operant conditioning.

Learning theory

Infant associates caregiver with food, turning them into a conditioned stimulus.

Classical conditioning (attachment)

Overview of C.C and attachment

Food (US) → Content infant (UR)

Mother (NS) → Infant (UR)

Mother + Food → Content infant (UR)

Mother + Food (CS) → Content infant (CR)

Attachment is strengthened through negative reinforcement when caregiver reduces discomfort.

Operant conditioning (attachment)

The idea that attachment forms because the caregiver provides food.

Cupboard love theory

Internal working model overview (Bowlby)

• Child forms mental representation of their relationship with their primary caregiver.

• Powerful effect on the child’s future relationship

  • If their 1st experience is loving and reliable, they tend to form an expectation that all relationships be of similar qualities, and bring them themselves.

  • Ditto for poor relationships.

Studied rhesus monkeys and found attachment is based on comfort rather than food.

Harlow (1958) overview

Harlow (1959) Procedure and Findings

• 8 rhesus infants, separated from their mothers at birth.

• Given access to 2 surrogate mothers; wire (food, no comfort), and cloth (no food, comfort)

• Found that comfort is more valued than food.

• Infants spent 17-18 hrs on cloth, 1 hr on wire (total) (don’t know about the missing hours)

• When introduced to the fear stimulus, they retreated to the cloth surrogate (secure base)

• They explored more with the cloth surrogate present.

Harlow (1959) evaluation

Strengths:

• Supports the evolutionary theory of attachment

• R.W.A- helped social workers understand the effects of child abuse and neglect, therefore can improve the system

Weaknesses:

• WILDLY unethical to the point of it being downright DESPICABLE

• food/comfort may not be the only explanations due to the trauma they underwent.

Generalisability can go either way- Rhesus monkeys have been deemed similar enough to humans to generalise the findings, however, they are still not human.

Harlow’s longitudinal study

Found that maternally deprived monkeys showed/became:

• Poor mating behaviour

• Abusive and/or infanticidal parents

• A range of serious abnormal behaviours e.g. increased agression

Emotional comfort provided by physical closeness.

Contact comfort

Infants form one primary attachment which is more important than all others.

Monotropic theory (Bowlby)

Bowlby (1969) Overview

Proposed a theory of attachment based on evolution. Observed and interviewed children and their families separated (/orphaned) in WW2. This was often conducted in institutions.

The tendency to form one special emotional bond with one caregiver.

Monotropy

The 2 key principles for the importance of monotropy.

1) Law of continuity: The more constant and predictable the child’s care, the better quality the attachment.

2) Law of accumulated separation: the effects of every separation from “mother” adds up and cause damage- even in small doses.

A mental representation of relationships that guides future relationships.

Internal working model

Innate behaviours (e.g. smiling, crying) that encourage caregiving.

Social releasers

Characterised by distress on separation and comfort on reunion.

Secure attachment

Infant avoids caregiver and shows little distress on separation.

Insecure-avoidant attachment

Infant shows intense distress and resists comfort on reunion.

Insecure-resistant attachment

A controlled observation measuring attachment through separation and reunion behaviours.

Strange Situation (Ainsworth et al) Overview

The 5 behaviours investigated in the strange situation

1. Proximity Seeking

2. Exploration & secure base behaviours

3. Stranger anxiety

4. Separation anxiety

5. Responses to reunion

Strange situation setup.

• Controlled observation procedure designed to measure the security of attachment displays towards a caregiver and included 100 MC Americans

• Takes place in a room with a 2 way mirror and controlled conditions.

The Strange Situation details:

• Aim: TBAT observe attachment behaviours as a means of assessing the quality of a child’s attachment of a child’s attachment to a caregiver.

• Procedure:

  1. Child is encouraged to explore (secure base)

  2. Stranger comes in and tries to interact with the child (stranger anxiety)

  3. Caregiver leaves child w stranger (separation/stranger anxiety)

  4. Caregiver returns and stranger leaves (secure base, reunion)

  5. Caregiver leaves child alone. (Separation anxiety)

  6. Stranger returns. (Stranger anxiety)

  7. Caregiver returns, stranger leaves. (Reunion behaviour)

Strange situation findings

• There are 3 types of attachment: Secure Attachment, Insecure-Avoidant, Insecure-Resistant.

• Most common attachment type: Secure Attachment (Type A). (About 60-75% of British toddlers)

  • Happy to explore, Secure base.

  • Moderate stranger anxiety

  • Require + accept comfort on reunion

• Insecure-Avoidant: 20-25% BT (Type B)

  • Explore freely, but no secure base

  • Unbothered by caregiver presence

  • Little stranger anxiety

• Insecure resistant: 3% BT

  • Seek greater proximity, explore less

  • Huge stranger/separation anxiety

  • Resists comfort.

Strange Situation Evaluation

Strengths:

• Strongly predicative of later development

• Internal Validity: Controlled conditions, and high inter-rate reliability.

Weaknesses:

• Ethnocentric

• Ignores the fact that the children are in an unfamiliar environment.

Distress shown when caregiver leaves.

Separation anxiety

Distress shown in the presence of an unfamiliar person.

Stranger anxiety

Using the caregiver as a base for exploration.

Secure base behaviour

Differences in attachment styles between cultures.

Cultural variations in attachment

A meta-analysis showing secure attachment is the most common type across cultures.

Aim: Look at the proportions of the attachment styles across a range of countries. Also looked at the variations within a country.

Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg (1988) Overview and aim

Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg Procedure

• Looked at 32 studies (1,900 children)- All strange situation.

• 15/32 were in America, 8 countries total.

• Meta-analysis

Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg findings

• In all countries, secure attachment was most common. Varied from 75% in UK to 50% in China.

• Insecure-resistant attachment was least common overall. Varied from 3% in UK to 30% in Israel.

• Insecure-Avoidant attachments were observed most commonly in Germany and least commonly in Japan.

• Variations between variations between results of studies within the same country were 150% greater than between countries.

Van Ijzendoorn & Kroonenberg Evaluation

Strengths:

• Large sample size

• Secure attachments are most common (confirmed)

Weaknesses:

• 18/32 Studies were in America

• Country does not equal culture

• 27/32 were individualist cultures

• Socio-economic classes may have affected the attachment styles.

Simonella et al overview

• Aim: To investigate if attachment rates in Italy still matched historical findings.

• Procedure: Assessed 76 infants, aged 12 months, using the Strange Situation.

• Findings: 50% secure, 36% insecure-avoidant.

• Conclusion: This is a lower rate of secure attachment (50%) than in historical studies. Researchers suggested this shift is due to modern social changes, such as more mothers of young children working long hours and using formal childcare, showing that cultural changes influence attachment patterns.

Jin et al. Overview

Study to examine cultural variations in attachment by analysing attachment types in Korea using SS. Aimed to compare Korean attachment patterns to those in other countries, particularly to test if the "secure" classification is the universal norm. 

Overview

• Sample: 87 Korean infants and their mothers.

• Method: SS was used to observe behaviours, with a focus on reunion episodes.

• Findings: High proportion of infants were SA, rates similar to those found in Western and non-Western countries.

• Key Finding on Insecure Attachment: In the insecure category, there was a pattern: most were classified as IR, with only one child identified as IA.

• Comparison to Japan: Distribution was very similar to findings in Japan.

• Conclusion: Similarity was attributed to shared child-rearing practices, such as high levels of mother-infant proximity. 

Contextual Factors

• Maternal Behaviour: Korean mothers more likely to approach the baby immediately and stay during reunion episodes compared to the original sample, even when baby wasn’t distressed.

• Cultural Differences: Highlighted that while secure attachment is a universal norm, specific cultural child-rearing practices influence the type of insecurity observed (resistant vs. avoidant).

• Validity: The findings support that while the "secure base" concept is universal, the SS might be interpreted differently in cultures where separation is rare. 

Takahashi (1990) Overview

Cross-cultural psychology study examining validity of the SS procedure in Japan. Applied to 60 MC Japanese infants, found big cultural variations in attachment, showing child-rearing practices influence how infants react to separation, challenged assumption that SS is a universal measure of attachment security. 

Findings and Observations

• High Separation Distress: Nearly all (90%) of the "infant-alone" steps had to be stopped due to extreme anxiety in infants. Japanese infants (rarely experience separation from their mothers) found the situation more stressful than American infants.

• Insecure-Resistant Frequency: Study found high proportion of I.R infants (32%).

• No Insecure-Avoidant Infants: There was a complete absence of I.A classifications.

• Secure Attachment Rates: Despite high stress, 68% of the infants were classified as S.A, similar to original US sample. 

Cultural Interpretation and Critique

• Insecure-Resistant Misinterpretation: The high level of distress, often classified as "insecure-resistant" in Western contexts, was interpreted as a reflection of cultural norms (constant mother-infant proximity), rather than true attachment insecurity.

• Revaluation of Avoidance: The absence of I.A reflects Japanese child-rearing values, which discourage the outward expression of negative emotions and promote obedience, rather than independence or separation.

• Critique of the Strange Situation: Highlights how Strange Situation acts as "imposed etic," applying Western cultural norms to a collectivist culture where such scenarios are unnatural. 

Conclusion
While it can be applied in different cultures, its interpretation must consider local context. Behaviours labelled as insecure in the US may represent culturally appropriate adaptation in Japan, suggesting that the tool lacks universal validity.

SS Kogen et al (1986)

Attachment is more related to temperament than attachment. In which case, SS is merely measuring anxiety.

What did Bowlby say about maternal deprivation?

Continual presence of a nurturing mother/mother figure is essential for normal psychological development- emotional and intellectual.

Separation vs Deprivation

Separation: not being in the presence of the primary attachment figure.

• Only an issue if deprived

Extended separations can lead to deprivation, which causes harm

Effects of Maternal Deprivation

• Intellectual development:

  • Prolonged maternal deprivation during the CP results in delayed intellectual development, often low IQ

• Emotional development, Affectionless Psychopathy:

  • Absence of guilt/empathy

  • Prevents development of normal relationships

  • Associated with criminality

  • Lack of remorse

Bowlby’s 44 Thieves study

• Aim: Investigate the long-term effects of maternal deprivation on emotional and social development

• Procedure:

  • Used 44 criminal teenagers accused of petty crime (theft). Control group: Non-criminal, but emotionally disturbed.

  • Thieves interviewed for signs of affectionless psychopathy

  • Their families were interviewed to establish of they had prolonged early separation from their mothers.

• Findings:

  • 14/44 had affectionless psychopathy

  • 12/44 had had prolonged maternal separation

  • Only 5 of the remaining 30 had experienced separations

  • Control: Only 2/44 had had long separations

• Conclusions: Prolonged separation/deprivation causes affectionless psychopathy.

Bowlby’s 44 Thieves evaluation

Strengths:

• Use of control group (methodological).

• RWA- highlighted the importance of maternal care.

Weaknesses:

• Researcher bias.

• Not very generalisable.

• Not reliable/valid- can’t replicate.

• Psychodynamic reductionism.

• Failure to distinguish between deprivation and privation

Effects of living in an institution with limited emotional care.

Institutionalisation

Found long-term effects of early deprivation on attachment.

Romanian orphan studies (Rutter)

Lack of selective attachment, shown by equal friendliness to strangers.

Disinhibited attachment

Early attachment types predict later emotional relationships.

Continuity hypothesis