Animal Studies: Harlow

Question 1

what was the aim of Harlow study?

Answer 1

to examine the extent to which contact comfort and food influences attachment behaviour in baby rhesus monkey.

Question 2

what was the method?

Answer 2

two surrogate mothers: one harsh ‘wire mother’ and a second soft ‘towelling mother’, a sample of 16 babies were used across four caged conditions

Question 3

what were the four caged conditions?

Answer 3

1. ‘wire mother’ dispensing milk and ‘towelling mother’ with no milk
2. ‘wire mother’ w/ no milk and ‘towelling mother’ dispensing milk
3. ‘wire mother’ dispensing milk
4. ‘towelling mother’ dispensing milk

Question 4

what was measured and how?

Answer 4

• the amount of time the monkey spent with each mother and spent feeding at each one was recorded
• to test mother preference during stress, the monkeys were startled with a loud noise and their responses recorded
• a larger cage was used in some instances to observe the degree of exploration

Question 5

results of Harlow’s investigation

Answer 5

• monkeys preferred contact w/ towel mother regardless of whether she dispensed milk
• would stretch across for food from wire whilst clinging onto towel
• only showed stress (diarrhoea) to noise in conditions w/ only wire mother, as clinged to towel
• greater exploration w/ towel indicative of emotional security

Question 6

Harlow’s conclusion

Answer 6

• rhesus monkeys have an innate drive to seek contact comfort from their mothers
• suggests that attachment is formed through emotional need for security rather than food
• contact comfort = willingness to explore & less stress

Question 7

long-lasting effects

Answer 7

• motherless monkeys were socially and sexually abnormal (didn’t show mating behaviour or cradle their own babies)
• froze and fled when approached by other monkeys
• monkeys returned to real mother before 90 days could recover but those after 6mths + never did

Question 8

strengths of Harlow’s research

Answer 8

valuable contributions
- preferred towel even if it didn’t feed them & critical period (supports monotropic/refutes learning theory)

Question 9

limitations of Harlow’s research

Answer 9

carried out on animals
- used monkeys taken from their natural mothers so limited findings
co-founding variables
- towels face resembled a monkey affects internal validity
ethical issues
- taken from birth, kept in isolated cages, can’t be replicated due to maltreatment but can be justified due to important findings