Module 4d Transcript - Early Attachment Experiences

Vocabulary flashcards covering primary concepts of attachment theory, early experiences, and various attachment styles in adult relationships.

Benign neglect

A type of upbringing where parents are loving and meet basic needs but are not focused or present, often appearing physically there but not mentally attending to the child.

Felt security (childhood context)

A term used by attachment theorists to describe a child's experience of safety and protection provided by a caregiver.

Felt security (adult context)

The confidence an individual has that their partner cares about them and will look after their well-being.

Attachment styles

A general set of expectations concerning how responsive others will be and how worthy an individual is of love and care, often forming the basis for interpreting the behaviors of romantic partners.

Relationship-threatening attributions

The process of interpreting a partner's actions in a way that suggests something negative about the partner's feelings or the overall well-being of the relationship.

Avoidant attachment

An attachment style characterized by a negative model of others, where individuals resist seeking support or comfort and are reluctant to provide it to their partners.

Negative model of other

A belief that others will not be responsive to one's needs, leading to a lack of trust and a resistance to showing vulnerability.

Attachment anxiety

An attachment style characterized by a negative model of self, demanding support-seeking, and becoming overinvolved in a partner's problems.

Negative model of self

A belief held by anxious individuals that they lack the ability to cope with problems on their own.

Compulsive caregiving

Anxious behavior in which an individual gets overinvolved in a partner's problems, taking them on as their own until the lines between support-giver and receiver blur.

Contextual revisionist theorists

Theorists who argue that attachment styles change significantly with changes in environment and partners, erasing old expectations.

Prototype theorists

Theorists who argue that while attachment styles can be modified, they are anchored by early life patterns and cannot be entirely re-written.