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psychology yr12 > Attachment > Flashcards

Attachment Flashcards

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1
Q

Define attachment

A

A close two way emotional bond between individuals in which each sees the other as essential for emotional security

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2
Q

How are attachments formed

A

Interactions

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3
Q

What does having a high quality of interactions lead to for an infant

A

High social + intellectual development

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4
Q

What are the 3 features of attachment

A

Proximity
Seperation distress (especially prevalent in infants)
Secure base behaviour (security that the attachment is reciprocal)

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5
Q

What are the two features of caregiver - infant interactions

A

Reciprocity
Interactional synchrony

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6
Q

What is reciprocity

A

When each individual responds to, and gets responses from, the other - giving + getting the same back

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7
Q

Give an example of reciprocity

A

A mother smiles and her baby smiles back

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8
Q

Babies play an _____ role in reciprocity

A

Active role - not just passive

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9
Q

Babies have ______ phases where they signal they are ready for attention

A

Alert phases

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10
Q

On average how often do mums pick up on baby’s alert phases

A

Around 2/3rds of the time

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11
Q

What has reciprocity often been described as

A

A dance - each responds to the other

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12
Q

What is interactional synchrony

A

The actions and emotions of the caregiver and infant are mirrored - what is done to the baby the baby does back

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13
Q

Give an example of interactional synchrony

A

A baby moves her head in time with her mother

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14
Q

Give two examples of studies into interactional synchrony

A

Meltzoff and Moore
Isabella et al

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15
Q

Describe the study of Meltzoff & Moore

A

Adult displayed 113 expressions or gestures to babies
(independent observer noted babies’ response)
found significant association with the babies’ response

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16
Q

Describe the study of Isabella et al

A

30 mums + babies - higher synchrony = better quality attachment - discovered there’s usually one primary caregiver attachment - later on in life babies can develop more

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17
Q

Give a strength of research into caregiver - infant interaction

A

High control
To observe these processes researchers tend to use controlled observation- high in validity because captures fine detail since process is filmed - children don’t have demand characteristics

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18
Q

Give three limitations of research into caregiver - infant interaction

A

Limited insight
Contradictory research
Socially sensitive

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19
Q

Expand on the limitation limited insight for research into caregiver - infant interactions

A

Not particularly useful despite observation as it does not tell us their purpose - make inferences doesn’t definitively state - infants perspective is unknown - can’t tell if actions are conscious + deliberate or not

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20
Q

Expand on the limitation contradictory research for research into caregiver - infant interactions

A

Other studies have failed to replicate the findings of Meltzoff and Moore e.g. Koepke et al (1996) but m&m have criticised Koepke’s research by saying it was less controlled

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21
Q

Expand on the limitation socially sensitive for research into caregiver - infant interactions

A

Puts pressure on mothers to stay home for an extended period of time- especially first critical 3-6 months - believe they may miss out on key reciprocity and affect development

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22
Q

what is meant by reciprocity in the context of caregiver - infant interaction

A

A two way mutual process - each party responds to the others signals to sustain interaction - the behaviour of each party elicits a response from the other

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23
Q

Who looked into stages of attachment

A

Schaffer and Emerson

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24
Q

Who did Schaffer and Emerson observe and for how long

A

60 w/c Glaswegian babies
At home every month for 1st year - then again at 18mnths

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25
Q

Schaffer and Emerson asked the mums about _______ and ________ anxiety to measure attachment

A

Stranger & seperation

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26
Q

What 5 stages of attachment did Schaffer and Emerson find (in order)

A

Asocial stage
Indiscriminate stage
Specific attachment
Multiple attachments

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27
Q

When is the asocial stage

A

0 - 6 weeks

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28
Q

What is the asocial stage

A

First few weeks - humans & objects are treated the same - with some preference for people (especially familiar people)

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29
Q

When is the indiscriminate stage

A

6weeks to 7mnths

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30
Q

What is the indiscriminate stage

A

More social + clear preference for people over objects - no stranger/seperation anxiety - accept comfort from all

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31
Q

When is the specific attachment stage

A

7 - 9 months

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32
Q

What is the specific attachment stage

A

Signs of attachment to one primary attachment figure (65% were mum) stranger & seperation anxiety

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33
Q

When is the multiple attachments stage

A

10mnths & upwards

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34
Q

What is the multiple attachment stage

A

Shortly after specific - attachment starts extending to others (develop secondary attachments) - by 1yr most had multiple attachments

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35
Q

What is a strength of Schaffer and Emersons study into attachment

A

Good external validity
Carried out in families’ own homes - most of observation done by parents - not artificial setting - babies unaffected by demand characteristics

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36
Q

What are two limitations of Schaffer and Emerson’s study

A

Problems with asocial stage

Methodological problems

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37
Q

Develop on the limitation ‘problems with the asocial stage’ for Schaffer & Emerson’s study

A

Important interactions do take place - babies that young are immobile + its hard to make judgements but doesn’t mean the behaviours aren’t social the evidence is just hard to interpret

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38
Q

Develop on the limitation ‘methodological’ for Schaffer & Emerson’s study

A

Problems measuring multiple attachments - a baby getting distressed when someone leaves doesn’t necessarily mean they are an attachment figure - Bowlby states they are a playmate rather than AF

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39
Q

When looking into the role of the father in regards to attachment what did Schaffer and Emerson find

A

Dads primary attachment - 3%
75% attached to dad as the secondary figure by 18mnths

40
Q

What did Grossman et al find about the role of the father in their longitudinal study

A

The quality of the mums attachment crafts adolescent attachment
The quality of the dads attachment crafts adolescent attachment

41
Q

What did Field discover about the role of the father in attachment

A

When primary, Dads are just as responsive as primary mum’s - gender of parent is not important rather responsiveness

42
Q

Who did Field observe

A

Babies with primary mum, secondary dad and primary dad

43
Q

What are two strengths of research into the role of father in attachment

A

Practical implications

Biological explanations support research

44
Q

Expand on the strength ‘practical implications’ for research into the role of the father in regards to attachment

A

Research like Fields shows that fathers can be primary caregivers - important practical applications for maternity/paternity leave suggesting it could be split and would have no impact on the child

45
Q

Expand on the strength ‘biological explanations support research’ for research into the role of the father in regards to attachment

A

Maybe an evolutionary adaptation for women to be primary caregivers and men secondary attachment figures - female hormones (oestrogen) create higher levels of nurturing - more biologically suitable to be PA figure

46
Q

What is a limitation of research into the role of the father in attachment

A

Contradictory findings
MacCallum et al disagree with Grossman - found children growing up in fatherless households develop the same as those who do - fathers not important

47
Q

Describe the procedure for Lorenz’s geese study

A

Split 12 geese into 2 groups , observed who they were attached to in the first 6 hours
G1 - saw Lorenz first
G2 - saw their mother first - the control group

48
Q

What was Lorenz’s findings in his study

A

The 6 that saw Lorenz first attached to him
The 6 that saw the mum first attached to her

49
Q

Define imprinting

A

When they (geese etc) attach to the first moving object they see

50
Q

The time after hatching when birds must attach is known as …. (Lorenz)

A

Critical period

51
Q

What is sexual imprinting in birds

A

Initial attachment in birds forms the basis of their later mate preferences

52
Q

What type of monkeys did Harlow work with

A

Rhesus monkeys

53
Q

Why did Harlow study rhesus monkeys instead of geese like Lorenz

A

RM’s more similar to humans than geese

54
Q

Describe the procedure for Harlow’s monkeys

A

Raised 16 baby monkeys with two wire ‘mothers’ - one cloth covered and one plain - wire which dispensed milk to see if the monkeys would seek comfort over food

55
Q

What were Harlow’s findings

A

Discovered the monkeys spent more time & sought more contact comfort with the cloth ‘mother - especially when scared - followed monkeys into adulthood and found long term consequences

56
Q

What were the long term consequences for the money’s in Harlow’s study

A

Anti social aggressive behaviour
Majority didn’t mate couldn’t display courtship behaviours
Hostility towards offspring

57
Q

How long were the monkeys critical period (Harlow)

A

90 days

58
Q

What are two strengths of animal studies of attachment

A

Influential Lorenz
Influenced theories e.g. Bowlby’s monotropic theory

Harlow practical application
Application to range of contexts e.g. social workers better understand risk factors for deprivation - neglect & abuse
Impacted breeding programmes for monkeys in captivity

59
Q

What are two limitations of animal studies into attachment

A

Lorenz - generalisability to humans
Mammalian attachment system differs to birds - Mammalian mothers more emotional & babies may be able to form attachments at any time

Lorenz contradictory evidence

60
Q

What contradictory evidence is there for Lorenz’s study

A

Guitan et al (1966) chickens that imprinted on yellow washing up gloves would try to mate with them as adults - but learned to prefer mating with other chickens - imprinting is reversible

61
Q

What did Guitan et al investigate

A

The accuracy of the permanent effect attachment has on mating behaviour even in birds

62
Q

Who proposed the learning theory

A

Dollard & Miller - from behavioural approach

63
Q

What did the learning theory propose

A

Attachment was a learned behaviour based on food coined ‘cupboard love’ - attachment = secondary drive hunger = primary

64
Q

How does classical conditioning factor into the learning theory

A

Food = UCS producing UCR of pleasure mum is a NS produces NR when we pair food with mum baby learns to associate mum with pleasure making , mum becomes CS and pleasure a CR - attachment then formed

65
Q

Why is pleasure initially a UCR (learning theory)

A

It’s an automatic innate human response

66
Q

How does operant conditioning factor into the learning theory

A

Explains how attachment formed by food between baby & mum is maintained

67
Q

Who is positively reinforced (learning theory)

A

Baby is positively reinforced given comfort & interaction when crying

68
Q

Who is negatively reinforced (learning theory)

A

Parent is negatively reinforced crying is removed by interacting

69
Q

Mutual __________ leads to maintenance of attachment (learning theory)

A

Reinforcement

70
Q

What is a strength of the learning theory

A

Some evidence supports conditioning
Many aspects of human development is affected by conditioning - the provision of comforts + association between PC & social interaction is what builds attachment

71
Q

What are two limitations of the learning theory

A

Alternative explanations
Contradictory research

72
Q

What is an example of contradictory research of the learning research

A

Harlow’s monkeys suggested food not most important factor in attachment but comfort is - challenges validity

73
Q

Give an example of an alternative explanation to the learning theory

A

Ignores evolutionary factors - Bowlby’s monotropic explanation is much more comprehensive & has more research support - attachment behaviours are innate

74
Q

Bowlby takes inspiration from _____ & ______ to propose and _________ explanation of attachment

A

Lorenz & Harlow
Evolutionary

75
Q

What are the five factors of Bowlby’s monotropic theory

A

Adaptive
Social releasers
Critical period
Montropy
Internal working model

76
Q

What is the adaptive feature (Bowlby)

A

Attachment is an innate system that has adaptive functions i.e. it ensures our survival

77
Q

What is the social releasers feature (Bowlby)

A

Babies have innate ‘cute’ behaviours that encourage adults to respond to them & attach to them - encourages reciprocity

78
Q

Give an example of a social releaser

A

Cooing , smiling , gripping

79
Q

Which theory does Bowlby’s monotropic theory reject

A

The learning theory

80
Q

What is the critical period feature (Bowlby)

A

Attachment development begins in the first few weeks and is most sensitive and critical from 6mnths - 2 years

81
Q

What is the montropy feature (Bowlby)

A

The primary attachment figure is different & more important than others

82
Q

The monotropy feature of Bowlby’s montropic theory includes the law of _______ & ________ _______

A

The law of continuity
The law of accumulated seperation

83
Q

What is the law of continuity

A

The more consistent the care the better

84
Q

What is the law of accumulated seperation

A

The impact of every seperation adds up

85
Q

What does the IWM feature of Bowlby’s monotropic theory state

A

The PA figure forms our template of what attachments should look like
Healthy childhood attachment = healthy later attachment

86
Q

What is the influence of early attachment on friendships & bullying?

A
  • children that have secure attachments go on to have healthy long lasting relationships and vice versa
  • children that have insecure attachments go on to have unhealthy relationships & have difficult
87
Q

What were Myron Wilson & Smith’s findings when looking into the influence of early attachment on bullying?

A
  • 196 children from London 7-11yrs are given questionnaires on behaviours on bullying
    They found…
  • secure (type B) children were uninvolved in bullying
  • type A were more likely to be bullied
  • type C were more likely to be the bullies
88
Q

Who looked into the effect of early attachment on adult relationships?

A

Hazan & Shaver

89
Q

What was the procedure for Hazan & Shaver’s study?

A
  • volunteer sample
  • created a love quiz in a local newspaper
  • analysed 620 replies
  • assessed childhood attachment types and current/past adult romantic relationships
90
Q

What were the findings of Hazan & Shaver’s love quiz?

A

Secure - longest healthiest relationships
Avoidant - fear of intimacy
Resistant - fear of abandonment

91
Q

Who looked into the influence of early attachment on later mother baby relationships

A

Bailey et al

92
Q

What was the procedure for Bailey et al’s study?

A
  • measured mother & baby attachments in their home / mother & grandmother relationships using interviews
  • the mother & baby attachments were measured using the strange situation
93
Q

What were the findings of Bailey et al’s study?

A
  • most women had same classification of attachment to their baby as they did to their mother
94
Q

What is a strength of the theory that attachment style influences later relationships ?

A

Research support - suggests their is a link between attachment style & later relationships (Hazan & Shaver’s love quiz etc)

95
Q

What are 3 limitations of the theory that attachment style influences later relationships?

A

Retrospect + validity - psychologists ask adults about their attachments in childhood may be dishonest & inaccurate / affects validity

Confounding variables - not causational all research is correlational / things that influence our later relationships may have nothing to do with our childhood e.g. bad first romantic relationship / affects validity and generalisability

Deterministic - just because there is a link doesn’t mean the outcome is inevitable / socially sensitive

psychology yr12 (8 decks)

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