Animal studies of attachment Flashcards
what are the two researchers involved in animal studies of attachment
Lorenz and Harlow
what was the aim of Harlow’s study
research into contact comfort- to study the mechanisms by which newborn rhesus monkeys bond with their mothers
what was the procedure of Harlow’s study
- two types of surrogate mothers were constructed- a harsh wire mother and a soft towelling mother
- 16 baby monkeys used, 4 in each condition in a cage
what were the conditions in the procedure of Harlow’s study
- wire mother producing milk and towelling mother producing no milk
- wire mother producing no milk and towelling mother producing milk
- wire mother producing milk
- towelling mother producing milk
what were the findings of Harlow’s study
- monkeys preferred contact with towelling mother when given a choice of the two mothers- regardless of whether she produced milk
- monkeys would stretch across to the wire monkey to feed whilst clinging to the towelling mother
- when frightened by a loud noise monkeys clung to the towelling mother
- in large cage conditions, monkeys with a towelling mothers explored more and visited their surrogate mother more
what did the monkeys with only wire mothers suffer from
monkeys with only wire mother suffered diohearia (sign of stress)
what is the conclusion of Harlow’s study
- rhesus monkeys have an innate, unlearned need for contact comfort suggesting attachment concerns emotional security more than food
- monkeys willingness to seek refuge from something offering comfort rather than food suggests food is not as crucial as comfort when forming a bond
what does Harlow’s study do to the learning theory
weakens it
what are the evaluation points for Harlow’s study for validity(strengths)
high external validity- conducted in a controlled lab setting meaning there was a control of extraneous variables so Harlow was measuring what he intended
what are the evaluation points for Harlow’s study for reliability(strengths)
reliable- humans and monkeys are similar and Green states on a biological level, all mammals have the same brain structure as humans
what are the evaluation points for Harlow’s study for generalisability(weakness)
it is questionable whether findings and conclusions can be applied to complex human behaviours- it is unlikely that observations of rhesus monkeys clinging to cloth covered wire models reflects emotional connections and interaction that characterises human attachments
what are the evaluation points for Harlow’s study for ethics(weaknesses)
many of the animals suffered from long term stress related problems and it can be argued that animals have the right to not be researched or harmed
however his research was sufficiently important to justify the effects
what was the aim of Lorenz’s research
research into imprinting- to investigate the mechanisms where the youngsters follow and form an attachment to the first, large moving object they meet
what was the procedure of Lorenz’s research
- divided 12 goose eggs into two groups of 6
- one group hatched with their mother (control group) and the other hatched in an incubator where Lorenz was the first moving object they saw
- goslings were mixed together to see who they would follow
what were the findings of Lorenz’s research
- naturally hatched goslings followed their mother while incubator hatched goslings followed Lorenz and results were the same when they were mixed together
- when released from the upturned box, the naturally hatched goslings went to their mother and the incubator hatched goslings went to Lorenz
- these bonds proved to be irreversible
- process of imprinting occured a short period of time after birth- between 4 and 25 hours
what is imprinting
where bird species that are mobile from birth attach to and follow the first moving object they see
what did Lorenz find about imprinting
- identified a critical period in which imprinting needs to take place- depending on the species it can range from a few hours after hatching or birth
- if imprinting does not occur within that time Lorenz found chicks did not attach themselves to a mother figure
what are the evaluation points for Lorenz’s study for generalisability(weakness)
low generalisability- human attachment is different to that of birds e.g. mammalian mothers show more attachment to their young
what are the evaluation points for Lorenz’s study for ethics(weakness)
this study could have an affect on the gosling who hatched in an incubator as their development or interaction with other Goslings who have a normal environment could be effected
what are the evaluation points for Lorenz’s study for supporting research(strengths)
research to support the concept of imprinting
- Guton found chicks imprinted on yellow washing up gloves would attempt to mate with them as adults
- suggesting animals are born with an innate mechanism to imprint on a moving object in the critical window of development
