attachment Flashcards
reciprocity def
description of how two people interact
caregiver-infant interaction is reciprocal (both respond to each other’s signals and each elicits a response from the other)
(matching behaviour)
interactional synchrony def
caregiver and baby reflect both actions and emotions of the other
in a co-ordinated (synchronised) way
attachment studies strengths and limitations
S:
- filmed lab studies: variables that may distract babies are controlled, researchers can watch back to analyse behaviour and not miss key moments, multiple researchers can record data
- babies don’t know they are being observed so won’t change behaviour
L:
- hard to interpret babies behaviour (they lack coordination)
- hard to determine the babies perspective (so can’t be certain the behaviours seen in caregiver-infant interactions have a special meaning)
synchrony study
Meltzoff and Moore 1977
observed synchrony (mirrored the adults facial expressions or gestures more than chance would predict) in babies as young as 2 weeks old
- opening mouth, poking tongue out, frowning and waving a finger
- independent observer asked to see if infant copies primary caregiver
double blind - observer didn’t know aims, so less biased
synchrony study
Isabella et al 1989
observed 30 mothers and babies together and assessed the degree of synchrony and quality of mother-baby attachment
- high levels of synchrony were associated with better quality mother-baby attachment
conc: interactional synchrony is important for development of caregiver-infant attachment
attachment def
two way emotional bond
3 behaviours indicating attachment
seeking proximity
separation distress
secure-base behaviour
Schaffer 4 stages of attachment
- asocial stage (six weeks) behaviour to humans + inanimate objects are similar
- indiscriminate attachment (6 weeks - 6 months) obvious/observable social behaviour, clear preference to humans than objects, recognise and prefer company of familiar people
- specific attachment (7-12 months) attachment to a particular person aka primary attachment figure (mother 65% of time), stranger anxiety and separation anxiety
- multiple attachments (1 year) extending attachment behaviour to multiple people who they regularly spend time with (secondary attachment) but primary attachment remains strongest
Schaffer and Emerson 1964
glasgow babies study
aim: to find out at what age attachments begin
- 60 babies (5-23 weeks old) from working class homes
- studied for first 18 months of their lives (long period of time = longitudinal method)
- studied in their own homes, researchers visited every month for a year, then again at 18 months
- mother kept diary to measure separation anxiety in a range of everyday activities.
- researchers interviewed mothers about sep/stranger anxiety, they had to describe intensity of ‘protest’ on a four point scale and who it was directed at
glasgow baby study evaluation
- longitudinal method: increases validity, reduces participant variables
- in their homes: high ecological validity, they are in their real environment
- diary: detailed qualitative data
- sample size: large, so more generalisable, representative of target population
- not representative: all from one area, all from one type of home (not generalisable)
- diary: subjective, social desirability may affect, mother may forget, a lot of data to analyse
- dated, lacks temporal validity as family dynamics have changed a lot since 1960s
role of father study
Grossman et al 2002
longitudinal study, quality of relationship between parents and children changed from infancy to teenage years
found that early attachment to the mother was a better predictor of future attachment types and success (links to Bowlby’s theory of monotropy)
fathers role less important
however if father did active play with child, their adolescent relationship was better
eval: puts all the social pressure on mother and less on father, child behaviour blamed on mother?
role of father study
Geiger 1996
found fathers had different roles to mother
mum = caring, nurturing
dad= fun, playing
role of father has less impact on child’s attachments later in life
role of father study
Schaffer and Emerson
showed primary attachment is more likely to be made with the mother than the father.
- father was sole attachment only in 3% of cases
- in 27% of cases, father was joint first attachment, with mother
later on (18 months) 75% formed attachments with the father, so the role of the father has increasing importance
role of the father study
MacCallum and Golombok 2004
and
Goodsell and Meldrum 2009
found: children growing up in single or same sex parent families don’t develop any differently to two-parent hetero families
- is social change needed…paternity leave, male custody equality, more acceptance of single fathers
found: having a secure attachment with both parents is linked (children need both)
evaluating the role of the father
- research states different facts about fatherhood as they are all looking for different things (lack of consistency)
- socially sensitive issue - children without fathers are no different from those with, suggesting the fathers role is secondary
role of father
Field 1978
filmed 4 month old babies in face to face interaction with PCG mothers, SCG fathers and PCG fathers
PCG fathers interacted more in smiling, imitative grimaces, which is comparable to PCG mothers.
- seen to be more nurturing than traditional father roles
- shows there is flexibility in role of the father, men can respond to different needs of their children
animal studies - Konrad Lorenz 1935
aim, method, findings, conc
AIM: to examine imprinting in non human animals (offspring follows and forms attachment bond to first large moving thing they see)
METHOD: randomly divided greylag goose eggs into 2 batches. control group was hatched naturally by the mother. other group was hatched in an incubator, where Lorenz was the first large moving object they saw.
- Lorenz imitated a mother ducks quacking sound, so the young birds regarded him as the mother and followed him accordingly.
- he then marked the goslings depending on their condition and placed them under an upside down box. the box was removed and they recorded whether the geese followed the mother and Lorenz.
FINDINGS: naturally hatched goslings followed mother, incubator ones followed Lorenz and showed no attachment to the biological mother.
- he noted imprinting only occurred within a critical time of 4-25h after hatching
CONC: results suggest imprinting is a form of bird attachment that is innate and biologically driven.
support/evaluation for Lorenz study
+ Guiton 1966
used yellow rubber gloves to feed chicks during the critical period, the chicks imprinted on the glove. suggests young animals imprint on any moving thing during the critical period of development. later found trying to mate with the gloves (suggests irreversible long lasting effect of imprinting affecting social and sexual behaviour)
+ Hess 1958
showed strongest responses of imprinting are 12-17 hours after birth, and after 32 hours responses were unlikely to occur at all. believed once imprinting had occurred it is irreversible, nor can a gosling imprint on anything else.
- Hoffman 1976
suggested it’s not irreversible as after spending time with their own species they were able to engage in normal sexual behaviour suggesting imprinting is moderately reversible - low ecological validity, study done on birds isn’t generalisable to humans (human babies don’t imprint)
animal studies - Harry Harlow 1959
AIM: to examine extent to which contact comfort and food influences attachment in 16 baby rhesus monkeys
METHOD: he constructed 2 surrogate mothers: one harsh ‘wire mother’, second soft ‘towelling mother’.
- the amount of time the babies spent with each mother was recorded, with how much time was spent feeding at one.
- to test for response to stress, a loud noise startled the monkeys and their responses recorded.
RESULTS: monkeys preferred soft towelling mother even if there was no milk dispensed. when startled, they would cling to soft mother.
CONC: baby rhesus monkeys have an innate drive to seek contact comfort from their parent. suggests attachment is formed through an emotional need for security rather than food. the comfort provided is associated with higher willingness to explore surroundings and less stress.
support/evaluation for Harlow’s study
+ significant practical value in terms of design of zoos, and animal care in shelters (the research demonstrated importance of attachment figures and intellectual stimulation alongside contact comfort)
+ application to humans (many similar innate biological reactions in humans and monkeys), that we need primary caregiver to have contact comfort as well as just food, for healthy development to prevent problems with our own parenting skills
- ethical issues (long term psychological harm on the monkeys eg less skilled at mating, aggressive towards their children, socially reclusive) cost benefit analysis, were the findings worth the damage?
(critical period 90 days)
learning theory of attachment
(under the behaviourist approach)
says children are born with a blank slate and everything is learnt through experiences, so a baby has to learn to form an attachment with the mother.
- Dollard and Miller 1950
how humans are learning attachment
classical and operant conditioning
‘cupboard love’ attachment is due to the person providing food (suggesting its not unconditional)
drive reduction in babies
hunger is a primary drive (physiological need) , that is reduced when mother brings baby food
