Animal studies of attachment Flashcards
What were the procedures of Lorenz key study?
- Took a clutch of gosling eggs and divided them into two groups - one group left with natural mother, others placed in an incubator
- When incubator group hatched, the first living thing they saw was Lorenz - soon started following him around
- To test the effects of imprinting, chicks were placed all together, (incubator set were marked) Lorenz and their natural mother were present
What were the findings of Lorenz study?
The goslings quickly divided themselves up - Lorenz brood showing no recollection of their natural mother
Noted this process is restricted to a very definite period (critical period)
What were the long lasting effects of Lorenz study?
Several features of imprinting are irreversible and long lasting e.g. one of the geese used to sleep in his bed
Also had an effect on later mate preferences - sexual imprinting - where they tried to mate with the same object upon which they were imprinted
What criticisms are there of imprinting?
Many viewed imprinting as irreversible however it is now understood that imprinting is more of a ‘plastic and forgiving mechanism’ (Hoffman)
Example: Guiton found he could reverse the imprinting in chickens that had initially tried to mate with rubber gloves - found after spending time with their own species they were able to engage in normal sexual behaviour with other chickens
Therefore, imprinting is similar to learning and can be reversible
What were the procedures of Harlows study?
Harlow used 8 rhesus monkeys who were separated from their mothers at birth
- They were placed in cages with two surrogate “mothers” (had different heads)
- One was made of wire and provided milk.
- The other was cloth-covered but did not provide food.
The monkeys’ behavior was observed, especially in stressful situations.
What were the findings of Harlows study?
The monkeys spent more time with the cloth mother, even though it didn’t provide food.
When frightened, they ran to the cloth mother for comfort.
Only went to the wire mother briefly to feed.
What did Harlow conclude from his study?
Comfort and security (contact comfort) were more important than food in forming attachments.
This contradicted the learning theory of attachment (which suggests attachment is based on food).
What were the long lasting effects of Harlows study?
Monkeys raised without real mothers showed long-term social and emotional damage:
- Difficulty mating - sexually abnormal
- Poor parenting
- Socially withdrawn (would freeze in social interactions with other monkeys)
Like Lorenz, Harlow also found there was a critical period - he also found the effects could be reversed if the monkeys spent time with their ‘peers’ but only if this happened before 3 months - having 6 months with only a wire mother is not recoverable
Why may the confounding variable in Harlows study decrease the validity?
Due to the 2 heads being different, it varied systematically with the dependent variable and thus it is possible the reason the infant monkeys preferred one mother was due to a more attractive head
The conclusions of this study lack internal validity
What is the issue with generalising animal studies to human behaviour?
Humans differ in important ways - humans make conscious and rational decisions
While animal studies can be a useful pointer in understanding human behaviour, we should always seek confirmation by looking at research with humans
What are the ethical issues with Harlows study?
The study created lasting emotional harm as the monkey found it difficult to form relationships with their peers
Perhaps it can be justified in terms of the significant effect it has on our understanding of the processes of attachment - research can be used to offer better care for human infants
Benefits outweigh costs?
