attachment 1.1

Question 1

attachment

Answer 1

formation of a strong, reciprocal, emotional bond between an infant and a caregiver

first attachment is usually our primary caregiver, although we do continue to form attachments throughout our life

Question 2

how do we know an attachment has formed?

Answer 2

Maccoby’s (1989)’s four main characteristics:
seeking proximity, wanting to be near

distress when separated

pleasure when reunited, joyful when with eachother

general orientation, the infant is generally always aware of caregiver and makes frequent contact

Question 3

why do we form attachments?

Answer 3

infants are physically helpless

they’re born with primitive reflexes such as sucking or grasping to help them survive

short term security

seeking interactions is innate and infants use social releasers

our first attachment is used as a template for future relationships

Question 4

how does Brazeleton et al (1975) describe reciprocity?

Answer 4

as a dance since each partner responds to each others moves

Question 4

reciprocity

Answer 4

the infant and their caregiver are able to reliably produce responses in eachother

these responses aren’t necessarily similar like interactional synchrony

two way and mutual, taking turns like a conversation

Question 5

Tronick et al (1975)

Answer 5

asked mothers who had been enjoying a dialogue with their child to stop expressing any emotion or response

the child desperately tries to provoke a response until they become upset

Question 5

what does Trevathen (2014) suggest about reciprocity?

Answer 5

turn taking in the infant-adult interaction is important for the development of social and language skills

Question 5

interactional synchrony

Answer 5

where a baby mirrors the actions of another person, in terms of their facial expressions and body movements

the actions move in synchrony

Question 6

how does Feldman (2007) describe interactional synchrony?

Answer 6

as a coordination of micro-level social behaviour

Question 7

imitation

Answer 7

infant mimics/copies the adult’s behaviour

Question 8

sensitive responsiveness

Answer 8

adult attends sensitively to infant’s communications

Question 9

Meltzoff and Moore (1997)’s aim

Answer 9

to identify imitation (interactional synchrony) between caregivers and infants

Question 10

Meltzoff and Moore (1997)’s procedure

Answer 10

infants aged between 12 and 27 days old were shown facial gestures (e.g. sticking tongue out) and manual gestures (e.g. waving fingers) to see if the infant would imitate the behaviour

the adult showed one of three different gestures to assess the response and a dummy was placed in the infant’s mouth to prevent a direct response

following the display, the dummy was removed

all responses were recorded on video

Question 11

Meltzoff and Moore (1997)’s results

Answer 11

infants as young as 12 days old could imitate both facial and manual gestures

Question 12

Meltzoff and Moore (1997)’s conclusion

Answer 12

the ability to imitate serves as an important building block for later development therefore must be innate

Question 13

how does Meltzoff and Moore (1977) support the idea of interactional synchrony?

Answer 13

as the baby was deliberately copying facial and hand gestures of the adult model

Question 14

how is high control a strength of caregiver infant interactions?

Answer 14

often highly controlled observations

for example, Meltzoff and Moore made use of technology to capture the micro sequences of behaviours that the infants displayed

this involves filming, often from different angles, the very fine details of expressions and movements that can be recorded and analysed later which can only be done in a highly controlled situation

internally valid

Question 15

how is no demand characteristics a strength of caregiver-infant interactions?

Answer 15

we change our behaviour when being observed, for example trying hard to act how the observers expect or don’t expect

however infants who are a few days/weeks old don’t have a clue

they don’t know they’re being observed so behaviour is more natural

more ecologically valid

Question 16

how is intentionality a weakness of caregiver-infant interactions?

Answer 16

it’s difficult to draw conclusions about the role of caregiver infant interactions in the development of attachment because it’s difficult to determine the infant’s intention

this is because what’s being observed is just hand movements or changes in facial expressions

the infant is limited in it’s ability to communicate and only has a few things that it can actually do

researcher needs to make inference about behaviour, hard to be certain about what is taking place from infant’s POV

Question 17

how is observer bias a weakness of caregiver infant interactions?

Answer 17

observational research, potential problem of bias with observer’s interpretation

e.g. they may observe an infant’s behaviour and interpret it as a direct response to the adult’s behaviour because that is what they’re hoping to find

this raises questions about validity and weakens understanding of caregiver infant interactions

however there is a way to deal with this which Meltzoff and Moore did, had an independent observer who was not aware of the aims of the study to judge the infant’s behaviour on the film

Question 18

how are practical issues a weakness of caregiver infant interactions?

Answer 18

infant behaviour makes it difficult to observe their behaviour because you can’t control it and have to wait for a period of time when you can observe them

e.g. may have booked baby and caregiver to come in at 3pm but baby decided to sleep instead

this results in fewer observations of infants done and for a shorter period of time due to their waking hours

Question 19

explain how practical application is a strength of caregiver infant interactions

Answer 19

it has drawn attention to the important behaviours needed to help the development of an infant

the research into caregiver infant interaction encourages mothers to engage in social interaction and respond to behaviours of their child in an appropriate and timely manner

it has pointed to importance of these interactions for the benefit of the child’s development, notably in areas such as empathy and language

Question 20

explain how being socially sensitive is a weakness of caregiver infant interactions

Answer 20

research emphasises the importance of interactional synchrony between a mother and an infant and suggests that a child may not develop as well if it doesn’t receive high levels of it

Isabella Rambeski’s research suggested that low levels of interactional synchrony can lead to insecure attachment

mothers who return to work shortly after their child is born may be negatively impacted as there are less opportunities for interactional synchrony

therefore research into caregiver infant interactions could put pressure on mothers to not to return to work when they need to

or may have less time due to looking after other children and can’t give as much attention which can lead to guilt

Question 21

Schaffer and Emerson (1964)’s aim

Answer 21

they aimed to investigate the formation of early attachment, in particular the age at which they developed, their emotional intensity and to whom they were directed

Question 22

Schaffer and Emerson (1964)’s procedure

Answer 22

sample of 60 babies (31m 29f) from Glasgow with majority working class families

it was a longitudinal study where the babies and mothers were studied every month for the first year and then again at 18 months

used observations and interviews

they assessed separation anxiety/ protest through infant being left alone in a room, left in the pram outside the shops, left in the cot at night etc.

also assessed stranger anxiety with the researcher starting home visits by approaching the infant to see if they got distressed

researchers asked questions about the kind of protest their babies showed in 7 everyday situations

Question 23

Schaffer and Emerson (1964)’s results

Answer 23

they found between 25-52 weeks about 60% of babies showed separation anxiety towards their caregiver (usually the mother)

attachment tended to be to the caregiver who was most interactive and sensitive to the infant’s signals and facial expression (reciprocity). this wasn’t necessarily the person who the infant spend the most time with

by 40 weeks 80% of babies had a specific attachment to the primary caregiver and almost 30% displayed multiple attachments e.g. father, grandparents etc.

Question 24

Schaffer and Emerson (1964)’s conclusion

Answer 24

there is a pattern of attachment common to all infants which is biologically controlled

furthermore, attachments are more easily made with those who are sensitive, for example recognising and responding appropriately to an infant’s needs rather than those spending the most time with a child