Attachment

Question 1

what is learning theory?

Answer 1

a theory by behaviourists that states that behaviour is learnt rather than innate.
Children are born as blank slates and become who they are due to experiences.
infants attach to caregivers due to association with food and strengthen it through reinforcement.

Question 2

what is classical conditioning?

Answer 2

child will form attachment to care giver because the caregiver is associated with food, the strongest attachment will therefore be with those who feed the child the most

Question 3

explain classical conditioning

Answer 3

unconditioned stimulus =food unconditioned response=happy baby
neutral stimulus + unconditioned stimulus=unconditioned response
conditioned stimulus–> conditioned response

Question 4

what is operant conditioning?

Answer 4

learning through reinforcement .Attachment bod built by classical conditioning then strengthened by operant conditioning .Food is the primary reinforcer, and the caregiver becomes the secondary reinforcer

Question 5

what is a critical period?

Answer 5

a time where attachment needs to form if it is to be formed at all

Question 6

what is imprinting?

Answer 6

the innate readiness to acquire certain behaviours during a critical period of development .e.g. an animal quickly develops a behaviour pattern of recognition to its mother or surrogate

Question 7

what are the effects of imprinting?

Answer 7

short term- survival: food, protection

long term- relationships: how to form relationships in adult life

Question 8

pros of animal studies.

Answer 8

• gives good insight into human behaviour as humans and animals are often very similar in terms of biology ,emotions
• can study animal infants in a way that would be unethical in humans

Question 9

cons of animal studies.

Answer 9

• must be cautious as what applies to animals may not apply to human infants
• ethical issues arise as separation fr0m mother can cause emotional harm which reduces the reputation of psychological research

Question 10

Lorenz’s study aim

Answer 10

to investigate imprinting in goslings

-independent groups

Question 11

Lorenz’s study procedure

Answer 11

separated gosling eggs into 2 groups;
-left with mother -put in incubator
after he tagged these geese and put them in a box to allow them to mix

Question 12

Lorenz’s study findings

Answer 12

Lorenz found that the group naturally divided and the incubator goslings followed Lorenz and attached to him over their mother.
-he found they followed the first moving object thy saw

Question 13

Lorenz’s study conclusion

Answer 13

-there is a 12-17 hour critical period after hatching when an attachment bond occurs aka imprinting. Suggests attachment is innate

Question 14

Harlow’s study aim

Answer 14

to investigate attachment processes in rhesus monkeys

-16 monkey sample and independent groups

Question 15

Harlow’s study procedure

Answer 15

-monkey put into cages with 2 surrogate mother. They were separated into 2 groups:
-monkey given a wire mother with food and a cloth mother without food
-monkey given cloth mother with food and wire mother without food.
he measured how long the monkeys spent with each mother and which one they ran to when frightened

Question 16

Harlow’s study findings

Answer 16

• Harlow found that the monkeys would spend 22/24 hrs a day with cloth mother even if she did not provide food. They also came to her when frightened.
• when returned with peers monkey could socialise or successfully rear their young when they reproduced

Question 17

Harlow’s study conclusion

Answer 17

supports evolutionary theory of attachment in that it is the sensitive response and security of the caregiver that is important(not food)

Question 18

define attachment

Answer 18

a mutual and intense emotional relationship between 2 individuals .They see each other as and essential for their emotional security, so the relationship is reciprocal

Question 19

what is reciprocity?

Answer 19

in caregiver-infant interactions
refers to a process of turn taking between the caregiver and infant. Actions of 1 partner elicits a response from the other

Question 20

what is interactional synchrony?

Answer 20

adult and baby responding in time with each other to sustain communication. They move almost as if they are one

Question 21

Meltzoff and Moore (1977) aim etc..

Answer 21

observe the beginning of interactional synchrony in infants with adults
they were as young as 2 weeks old
(3 facial experession,1 hand gesture (4 stimuli))

Question 22

Meltzoff and Moore (1977) procedure

Answer 22

-adult 1/3 distinctive facial expressions.

Childs response was filmed and identified by independent observers in a controlled observation

Question 23

Meltzoff and Moore (1977) findings

Answer 23

association found between the expression or gesture the adult ha displayed and the actions of the baby which suggests social interaction is innate

Question 24

what was Bowlby’s evolutionary theory of attachment?

Answer 24

suggests we come into the world biologically programmed to form attachments because they are crucial for survival(opposes LT)

Question 25

5 critical features of Bowlby’s monotropic theory

Answer 25

• monotropy
• adaptive
• social releasers
• internal working model
• critical period

Question 26

monotropy

Answer 26

Bowlby believed infants form one very special attachment with their mother called monotropy. If the mother isn’t available they could form bond with another present, adult, mother substitution

Question 27

adaptive

Answer 27

means they give our species and ‘adaptive advantage’ making us more likely to survive
if infant has attachment to caregiver they are kept safe ,given food and kept warm.

Question 28

social releasers

Answer 28

babies have social releasers which unlock the innate tendency of adults to care for them both physical and behaviour e.g. crying

Question 29

internal working model

Answer 29

monotropic attachment will form an IWM.
if child has string and healthy attachment with their primary attachment figure, they will develop strong and healthy relationships later in life vice versa

Question 30

critical period

Answer 30

babies have to form attachment w caregiver during this period.
Between 6 moths to 2 1/2 years old.
Bowlby said if this doesn’t happed child is damaged for life