attachment

Question 1

Define attachment

Answer 1

strong reciprocal bond between an infant and a caregiveer

Question 2

Outline reciprocity in care-giver infant interactions

Answer 2

• two/both ways
• requires active involvement of both the mother and child in order to send signals to each other
  E.g when the child smiles at the mother and the mother smiles back
• these occur periodically during alert phases of the child (Brazelton)

Question 3

Outline the research conducted into reciprocity

Answer 3

the importance of reciprocity was demonstrated by Brazleton et al who found that children as young as 2 weeks can attempt to imitate their caregivers , who in turn respond 2/3 of the times as found by Feldman

Question 4

Highlight the significance of recprocity

Answer 4

• it has been said that reciprocity is important in teaching the child to communicate
• it allows for the parents to take better care of the child as they can detect certain cues from the baby and respond to their needs sooner and more effectively

Question 5

Outline interactional synchrony in caregiver-infant interactions

Answer 5

• when the infant and caregiver become synchronised in their actions
• process of mirroring and co-ordination
  -The way the two interact changes slightly according to rhythm , pitch volume etc of adults voice
• has been said to improve communication between infant and child when child is older

Question 6

Outline the research conducted into interactional synchrony

Answer 6

• Condon and sander (1974)
  children can synchronise their movements with the sound of their cargivers voice
• Brazleton et al . demonstrated young infants can copy and display distinctive facial expressions/gestures

Isabella et al : leads to better communication between parent and child when child is older : emotional intensity of attachment

Question 7

Evaluate a strength of caregiver - infant interactions in humans

Answer 7

studies use high controlled observations

• Brazelton et al filmed the interactions from diff angles

-ensures a high level of detail and accuracy in the observations , (but also) allowing valid conclusions to be drawn : inter-rater reliability can be established

• independent observers can rewatch the tapes and compare their findings

Question 8

Evaluate a weakness of caregiver - infant interactions in humans

Answer 8

difficult to interpret a babies behaviour
- do not know whether their actions are meaningful e.g children as young as 2 weeks have little to no motor coordination

-bremner drew a distinction between behavioural response and behavioural understanding : just bc an interaction is reciprocal doesnt mean the child doesnt mean the interaction has a special meaning

Question 9

Outline Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study

Answer 9

1964
AIM to identify a pattern in the development of an attachment between an infant and a cargiver

PARTICIPANTS : 60 babies from glasgow , all from the same estate

PROCEDURE :
- analysed the interactions between infant and caregiver
-interviewed the carers
-mother had to keep a diary to track infants behaviours based on : seperation anxiety , stranger anxiety and social refrencing
- Longitudal study : lasted 18 months
- visited infants on a monthly basis and once again at the end of 18m

Question 10

Define stranger anxiety

Answer 10

heightened psychological arousal and distress in presence of a stranger

Question 11

Define separation anxiety

Answer 11

signs of distress upon the leaving of caregiver and how much they need to be comforting upon the return of caregiver

Question 12

Define social referencing

Answer 12

how often the infant looks at their carer to check how they should respond to something new

Question 13

Outline all 3 of the attachment behaviours

Answer 13

proximity: increasing need to stay physically close to their attachment figure

seperation distress: anxiety when attachment figure leaves their presence

secure base behaviour: when child uses attachment figure as a safe haven when in distress or upset

Question 14

Outline all the findings of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study

Answer 14

-more likely to form an attachment when :

-parent/carer had sensitive responsiveness ( more important that time spent w infant)

-responded to needs quickly and efficiently (intense attachment)

-attachment formed when carer communicates and plays with child rather than nurture child

• used finding to find STAGES OF ATTACHMENT

Question 15

Outline the stages of attachment

Answer 15

asocial stage:
(0-6 weeks)
- infant responds to objects and eyes similarly : but may respond more to faces and eyes

Indiscriminate stage:
(2-7 months)
- infant develops more responses to human company
- can tell difference between people but no stranger anxiety - comforted by anyone

Specific:
(7+months)
- infant begins to prefer one carer and seeks for security comfort and protection in their primary attachment figure
- able to show stranger and separation anxiety

Multiple:
(10/11 months)
- form multiple attachments w multiple people
-seek comfort security and protection in multiple people
- may also show separation anxiety for multiple people

Question 16

eval points for schaffer and emersons study

Answer 16

STRENGTHS
-naturalistic observation

LIMITATIONS
- lacks population validity
-lacks temporal validity
-lacks internal validity
-asocial stage cannot be studied objectively

Question 17

Evaluate strength of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study

Answer 17

Naturalistic observation
-realistic perspective of how infants would act on a day to day basis
- high external validity
- can generalise to wider population

CP cannot control extraneous variables that may affect study e.g

Question 18

Evaluate a limitation of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study (pop validity)

Answer 18

Lacks population validity
-all children were from small area in Glasgow + small sample size : reduces strength of conclusions

-cannot be generalised to wider population : limited explanation

Question 19

Evaluate a limitation of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study (temporal validity)

Answer 19

study was conducted in 1960s : lacks temporal validity

• parenting techniques have significantly changed since the 1950s : such as through influence of bowlby’s attachment findings

-must take caution when generalising study to modern day population
-may not be applicable

Question 20

Evaluate a limitation of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study (internal validity)

Answer 20

lacks internal validity
-uses self reporting methods: parents kept a diary

-accuracy of data collection may not be reliable : parents may skew the data by being busy or due to socially desirable bias : show that they are closer to infant to seem more of a “good parent”

• may intentionally not report negative infant behaviours
  -caution should be taken when placing integrity into these conclusions

Question 21

Evaluate a limitation of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment study (asocial stage)

Answer 21

asocial stage cannot be studied objectively

-children as young as 6 weeks lack basic motor coordination skills : cannot establish meaningful behaviours
-e.g “seperation anxiety”
-Bremner drew distinction between behavioural response and and behavioural understanding
-child has bond w caregiver: child cannot interpret importance of bond (no meaning)
-cannot draw causal relationships

Question 22

Outline the role of the father in attachment

Answer 22

Schaffer and Emerson: 75% of infants in their study formed a secondary attachment to their father by age of 18 months
-29% did so within a month of forming primary attachment (demonstrated by separation anxiety)
-suggests: father important but unlikely to be first attachment figure

Grossman et al 2002:
-longitudinal study : babies attachment until teens
-fathers have distinctive roles : play and stimulation rather than caring and nurture
-found: quality of fathers attachment was less important : less to do w/ emotional development

Tiffany Field: father CAN become the primary attachment figure
-observed interactions between infants and their primary caregiver , mother or father
- found: primary caregiver regardless of gender were more attentive towards the infant : spent more time holding and smiling them
-have sensitive responsiveness

Question 23

eval points for role of father

Answer 23

STRENGTH
-real world applications

LIMITATIONS
- homo couples: lack of agreement over extent of influence of father as primary attachment figure
- socially sensitive research
-gender of PAF is dictated by society

Question 24

Outline a strength of the role of the father in attachment

Answer 24

real world applications
-can offer advice to parents
-parents can dispute over who can be primary attachment figure
-mothers may be pressured to not work and equally fathers pressured to work

-however research such as Tiffany et al provides reassurance : fathers can become primary attachment figures too (hetereosexual) and lesbian couples (grossman) does not affect the childs development - not having a father

Question 25

Outline a limitation of the role of the father in attachment (homo couples)

Answer 25

MacCallum and Golombuk
-lack of agreement over extent of influence of father as primary attachment figure

• children growing up in homosexual or single parent families were not different compared to heterosexual parents
• suggests fathers may not be as crucial for development as suggested : role of father is still disputed (hetereonormativity)

Question 26

Outline a limitation of the role of the father in attachment (ALREADY DICTATED)

Answer 26

gender of primary attachment figure is largely dictated by society and biology

-woman expected to be caring , sensitive , biology suggests : woman have higher oestrogen and low levels of testosterone compared to men

• there are biological and social constrains on who PAF is (deterministic)

Question 27

Outline a limitation of the role of the father in attachment (socially sensitive)

Answer 27

socially sensitive research
- later abnormalities in life e.g mental retardation / psychopathy : blamed on parents (usually mother)

-single parents may be pressured to return to work at a later point in order to increase likelihood of infant forming an attachment

Question 28

Outline animal studies in attachment

Answer 28

Lorenz :
imprinting : animals form an attachment to first moving object they see directly after birth
sexual imprinting: attach to and display sexual behaviours towards first moving object or animal they see

-goose eggs

Harlow:
-importance of contact comfort
-rhesus monkeys

Question 29

Outline Lorenz’s animal research into attachment

Answer 29

• demonstrated concept of imprinting
  -imprinting occured in a clutch of goose eggs : half attached to and followed lorenz upon hatching and seeing him as the first moving object
• control group: with mother: imprinted and followed mother

imprinting must occur within first 30 months of life : after an attachment is not possible and consequences are irreversible

sexual imprinting: Lorenz reported a case of peacock who born surrounded by turtles and so only desired to mate with turtles in later life

Question 30

Outline evaluation for Lorenz’s goose study

Answer 30

lacks generalisability: mammalian systems have a different attachment system to that of birds

-mammals can potentially form attachments at any time during their lives at a higher emotional intensity
-low ecological validity : cannot be generalised outside of the research setting conducted

sexual imprinting is not permanent: Guilton et al : chickens who had imprinted on washing up gloves eventually learnt to prefer to mate w/ chickens despite initial printing
- learning and experience are important factors in imprinting and attachment formation

Question 31

Outline Harlow’s rhesus monkey’s study + what happened to monkeys afterwards

Answer 31

• demonstrated importance of contact comfort of rhesus monkeys with rhesus monkeys and two “iron maidens”
  Cloth bound maid
  Milk dispensing maid
• found : when monkeys were scared : irrespective of which wire monkey was dispensing milk : baby monkeys would seek comfort from cloth-bound mother
• conclusion : contact comfort was more important than food in the development of attachments

development issues associated with infant monkeys : even those who had option of cloth-bound mother : less skilled at mating and were aggressive to own children
socially reclusive
-demonstrated: importance of secure attachment to primary attachment figure within CP

Question 32

Outline evaluations for Harlow’s Rhesus study

Answer 32

significant practical value
-study was used in the design of zoo’s and care of animals in shelters
-research demonstrated the importance of attachment figures and intellectual stimulation alongside contact comfort

-therefore zoo’s should ensure that animals have the opportunity to form such attachments in order to ensure healthy development

ethical issues
-does no detract from quality or utility of research
-ethical breaches : LT psychological harm towards monkeys : suffered later on : mating and secure attachments
-COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS NEEDED

Question 33

Outline the learning theory of attachment

Answer 33

-in line with the empiricist approach (experience)
-children are born with a blank slate : learn to form an attachment with mother
-through classical and operant conditioning : in line w behaviourism and learning theory

cupboard love: i.e we form attachments to the person providing us with food
hunger : primary drive
attachment: association formed between caregiver and satisfaction of primary drive reduction (reduction in hunger)

Question 34

Outline how how attachment can be formed through CC and OP conditioning (learning theory)

Answer 34

Classical conditioning
- mother (NS) + feeling of pleasure that comes with being fed (innate UR) = association of mother with food and comfort of being fed
-mother becomes conditioned stimulus and pleasure for child
-happier when mother is near : attachment

Operant conditioning
- two way process
-child carries out action i.e crying : triggers response from mother : comfort/feeding
-positive reinforcement for the child and negative reinforcement for the mother
- child associates mother with reward of comfort
-encourages child to cry more = more reward
-food primary reinforcer , mother secondary rienforcer

Question 35

eval points for learning theory of attachment

Answer 35

STRENGTH
- association may play a role in formation of attachment (not a full role however)

LIMITATIONS
- contradictory evidence from animals studies
-contradictory evidence from human studies
-not universal features of attachment

Question 36

Outline limitation of learning theory of attachment (animals)

Answer 36

contradictory evidence from animal studies

-contact comfort was more important than food in development of an attachment
-primary attachment formed with cloth bound mother regardless of mother dispensing milk

• suggests : the US of food has very little influence upon the formation of attachments

Question 37

Outline limitation of learning theory of attachment (humans)

Answer 37

contradictory evidence from human studies

-Brazelton et al emphasised the importance of interactional synchrony and reciprocity in the formation of attachments between primary caregiver and infant

-these are universal features of attachment
- formation of attachment to those that are most attentive to our needs and deals with signals more skillfully (not more time w us)

-US of food is irrelevant in most cases

Question 38

Outline a strength of learning theory of attachment

Answer 38

elements of conditioning may be involved in some aspects of attachment

-unlikely to have a central role, however child may feel comfort and warmth upon presence of particular adult
-can influence and trigger formation of main attachment figure
- can be useful for understanding how attachments work

Question 39

Outline Bowlby’s monotropic theory of attachment

Answer 39

-evolutionary theory of attachment
-states that attachments are innate
ASCMI

A:= ADAPTIVE: attachments are an advantage, or beneficial to survival as it ensures a child is
kept safe, warm and fed

S = Social releasers – e.g. a cute face on a baby. These unlock the innate tendancy for adults to
care for a child because they activate the mammalian attachment system.

C = Critical period - time in which an attachment can form (2.5-3 yrs) Bowby suggested that if an attachment is not formed in this time, it never will. If an attachment does not form, you will be socially, emotionally, intellect and physically stunted

M = Monotropy – Bowlby suggested that you can only form one special intense attachment . This attachment is unique, stronger and different to others. Maternal deprivation, which is characterised by a lack of a mother figure during the critical period for attachment formation, results in emotional and
intellectual developmental deficits (mental retardation)

I = Internal working model – This is an area in the brain, a mental schema for relationships

Question 40

outline the Internal working memory

Answer 40

• area in the brain, a mental schema for relationships :nformation that allows you to know how to behave around people is stored.

IWMs are our perception of the attachment we have with our primary attachment figure.

-explains similarities in attachment patterns across families. Those who have a dysfunctional internal working model will seek out dysfunctional relationships

Question 41

eval points for bowlbys monotropic theory of attachment

Answer 41

STRENGTHS
- supporting evidence : IWM
-supporting evidence for social releasers

LIMITATIONS
-socially sensitive research
-may not be evident in all children

Question 42

Outline strength of Bowlbys Monotropic theory of attachment (IWM)

Answer 42

supporting evidence: IWM
Bailey et al
- observation of 99 mothers and the recording of their childs attachment type using strange situations
-poor, insecure attachments coincided with the mothers themselves reporting poor attachments with their own parents

suggests : IWM likely to be formed during initial attachment : significant for childs ability to parent children in later life

Question 43

Outline strength of Bowlbys Monotropic theory of attachment (social releasers)

Answer 43

supporting evidence
Brazelton et al
-observed babies trigger interactions w adults using social releasers while primary attachment figure ignored these releasers

found: babies became increasingly distressed
-role of social releasers are important for emotional deevelopment

Question 44

Outline limitation of Bowlbys Monotropic theory of attachment (socially sensitive)

Answer 44

Monotropy is an example of socially sensitive research.

Despite Bowlby not specifying that
the primary attachment figure must be the mother, it often is (in 65% of cases- schaffer and emerson).
Therefore, this puts pressure on working mothers to delay their return to work in an effort to ensure that theirchild develops a secure attachment.

Any developmental abnormalities in terms of attachment are therefore blamed on the mother by default. This suggests that the idea of monotropy may stigmatise ‘poor mothers’ and pressure them to take responsibility.

Question 45

Outline limitation of Bowlbys Monotropic theory of attachment (not always evident)

Answer 45

monotropy not evident in all children

e.g : schaffer and emerson found small minority of children were able to form multiple attachments from the outset

also supported by van Izjendoorn and Kronenberg, who found that monotropy is scarce in
collectivist cultures where the whole family is involved in raising and looking after the child

• unlikely to be universal feature of infact caregivere attachment as believed by bowlby : limited : only explains rare case

Question 46

Outline Ainsworth strange situations

Answer 46

• to assess how securely attached a child was to its caregiver
  -controlled observation : two way mirror
  -12-18 months

1. Infant plays with toys (caregiver present) : tests exploration and secure base behaviour
2. A stranger enters the room, talks to the caregiver and then approaches the child with a
   toy. tests stranger anxiety
3. The caregiver exits the room. If the infant plays the stranger observes without interruption.
   If the child is passive, the stranger attempts to interest them in the toy. If they show
   distress the stranger attempts to comfort them. separation and stranger anxiety
4. The caregiver returns while the stranger then leaves. tests reunion behaviour
5. Once the infant begins to play again, the caregiver may
   leave the room, leaving the child alone briefly. separation anxiety
6. The stranger enters the room again and repeats behaviour mentioned in step 3
   (observing, engaging, comforting as needed) stranger anxiety
7. The stranger leaves and the caregiver returns.
   The “strange situation” places the child in a mildly
   stressful situation in order to observe 4 different
   types of behaviour which are separation anxiety,
   stranger anxiety, willingness to explore and reunion behaviour with the caregiver.

Question 47

Outline the types of attachment Ainsworth found

Answer 47

Secure:
-most popular attachment type
-showed some seperation anxiety when parent/caregiver leaves room but can be comforted upon return
-able to play independently : use parent/caregiver as a safe base when exploring new environment
-65% of children.

Insecure resistant:
- infant becomes very distressed
-tries to follow caregiver when they leave
-upon their return : switch from seeking and rejecting social intimacy w them
-less inclined to discovering new environments
- 3% of children (least common)

Insecure avoidant
- shows NO seperation anxiety upon caregiver leaving room and no stranger anxiety to stranger
-may show anger and frustration towards carer and actively avoid interaction and intimacy w them
- independant : explore and play w/o caregiver
-20% of children

Question 48

eval points for ainsworths situations

Answer 48

Limitations
-It only measured the relationship type with one attachment figure
-There are ethical issues involved
-The study lacks population validity
The study also lacks ecological validity.

Question 49

Outline a limitation into ainsworth study

Answer 49

It only measured the relationship type with one attachment figure

• They only used mothers and their child in the study
• this can mean that the wrong attachment type for a child can be identified, as although
  they may not be so strongly attached to the mother, they may be securely attached with their
  father or an extended family member.

The study wrongly assumes that the child will be closer to the mother than any other adult figure.

Therefore, the study lacks internal validity, as it does
not always correctly measure a child’s attachment type with their primary caregiver.

Question 50

Outline a limitation into ainsworth study (ethics)

Answer 50

ethical issues involved

• 20% of children cried desperately at one point.
• highlights how it is ethically inappropriate, as a large proportion of the participants could have experienced psychological harm. This is unethical as it could cause long term emotional damage to the child, for the sake of a simple study.

L = Despite ethical issues not detracting from the quality of the research

it is important to conduct a cost-benefit analysis to assess whether the ethical costs are smaller than the benefits of an improved knowledge within this subject field.

Question 51

Outline a limitation into ainsworth study (pop validity)

Answer 51

The study lacks population validity

• It was primarily based on Western culture almost all of the studies were carried out in America.

suffers from cultural bias, so we are less able to generalise the findings and criteria to other cultures.

This is particularly the case due to the individualist-collectivist divide between Western and Eastern countries, alongside cultural differences in upbringing and the experiences which the child is exposed to.

• This suggests that the findings are culture bound and also lack ecological validity, because
  the results can only be generalised to the research settings within which they were found.

Question 52

Outline a limitation into ainsworth study (ecological validity)

Answer 52

The study also lacks ecological validity

-It was conducted in a lab setting, so all the variables were highly controlled.

-Despite the strict control over confounding and extraneous variables increasing the
confidence that can be placed in drawing a ‘cause and effect’ relationship between the two
outcomes. This is not representative of real life so it lacks mundane realism and cannot be
generalised to reality.

• However, the high control of variables means it is easily replicable so the findings are highly
  reliable. This increases confidence in the idea that the findings were not simply a ‘one-off’ but
  were statistically significant.

-This increases the confidence that can be placed in the attachment classification of children using strange situations

Question 53

Outline cultural variations in attachment

Answer 53

Izjendoorn and Kroonsberg
-studied patterns of attachment across a variety of cultures
-meta analysis
-32 studies of SS in 8 countries of around 1990 children
-studied proportion of different attachment types in each country

findings: most common in all countries was secure attachment , while insecure attachment was the least common overall
-resistant least common but most common in collectivist cultures
- variation between results were 150% greater within countries than across different countries

Question 54

Outline other studies conducted into cultural variation in attachment

Answer 54

Simonella et al
- proportion of securely attached children in Italy was only 50% : lower than predictions

-suggested that these changes may be due to changing cultural and social
expectations of mothers : more mothers are working : choosing childcare for caring of their child
-changing of primary caregiver

Jin et al 2012
-study of infants in korea
-similar rates of insecure and secure babies : higher rates of insecure resistant and only one insecure avoidant
-similar to that of japan
-therefore: similarities in child-rearing practices are
influential in establishing patterns of attachment.

Question 55

eval points for Cultural Variations in Attachment

Answer 55

• may lack ecological validity
  -can be considered reliable
  (use disadvantages of strange situations e.g ethics)
• culture-bound

Question 56

Limitation of kroonsberg and Izjendoorn Cultural Variations in Attachment (ecological validity)

Answer 56

may lack ecological validity
-did not measure what it intended to measure

-attempted to measure cultural variations in attachment through studying different
countries
-however : multiple different cultures can exist within the same country
this cultural variation was unlikely to be acknowledged

-researchers found that rural areas had an overrepresentation of insecure-resistant individuals, whereas urban areas had similar attachment patterns to the Western world

-study did not account for this difference: more likely to be studying differences between countries of attachment patterns, rather than culture

Question 57

strength of kroonsberg and Izjendoorn Cultural Variations in Attachment

Answer 57

findings are considered reliable
-significantly large samples used : 1990 children
-replicability increases validity and faith places in conclusions drawn

decreases the likelihood that the
observed results were simply due to chance or a ‘one-off’.
- high generalisability : ecological validity
(reduced ananomolous results caused by a bad methodology)

Question 58

Limitation of kroonsberg and Izjendoorn Cultural Variations in Attachment

Answer 58

-It only measured the relationship type with one attachment figure
-There are ethical issues involved

Question 59

Outline Bowlbys theory of maternal deprivation

Answer 59

The emotional and intellectual consequences of separation between a child and mother (deprivation)
- bowlby proposed :continuous care from the mother is essential for normal psychological development.
- lack of mother figure within the critical period

●An inability to form attachments in the future (see the Internal Working Model)

● Affectionless psychopathy (being unable to feel remorse)

● Delinquency (behavioural problems in the child’s teenage years)

● Problems with cognitive (brain) development (mental retardation) : suffer delayed intellectual development = Abnormally low IQ.

-commonly disrupted in situations
child is put into
-put in institutional care Goldfarb

-can have temporary effects on the child, or
permanent but fairly mild harm
-Privation is when a child fails to form any attachments at all.
This has been said to be more harmful to a child.

Question 60

Difference between Seperation and Deprivation

Answer 60

Separation:
- When the child isn’t in the presence of a primary attachment figure.
- Brief separations aren’t significant and only become an issue for development when the child is deprived.

Deprivation:
- Extended separations lead to deprivation, causing harm as they lose an element of the mother’s care.

Question 61

Outline a study where Bowbly assessed the effects of maternal deprivation

Answer 61

44 juvenile thieves study
- out of 44 thieves , 14 displayed signs of affection-less psychopathy
- 12 of these 14 had suffered from maternal deprivation during CP of attachment

was compared to only 5 affectionless psychopaths
in the remaining 30 thieves

-on this basis, Bowlby believed that early maternal
deprivation caused affectionless psychopathy and consequently, criminality!

Question 62

eval points for maternal deprivation

Answer 62

LIMITATIONS
-poor evidence

-Lewis et al disagreed with Bowlby’s conclusion that affectionless psychopathy and maternal
deprivation caused criminality

-effects of the critical period may not be as concrete as Bowlby originally believed
-socially sensitive research

Question 63

limitation for maternal deprivation (lewis)

Answer 63

Lewis et al

disagreed with Bowlby’s conclusion that affectionless psychopathy and maternaldeprivation caused criminality.

Through collecting qualitative data from interviews conducted
with 500 juveniles, the researchers found no link between maternal deprivation and a difficulty in
forming relationships in later life.

This suggests that Bowlby may have made incorrect causal
conclusions

Question 64

limitation for maternal deprivation (poor evidence)

Answer 64

Poor evidence = He used interviews from war orphans, those who grew in poor quality orphanages and 44 thieves study, which are all flawed evidence.

• Goldfarb’s war orphans = traumatised + poor after-care, so separation may have not caused developmental difficulties.
• Poor quality orphanages = deprived of many aspects of care, not just maternal.

Question 65

limitation for maternal deprivation

Answer 65

• it iis a socially sensitive research
  -economical (?) pressures woman to go to work later

Question 66

limitation of maternal deprivation (CP)

Answer 66

effects of the critical period may not be as concrete as Bowlby originally believed.
For example, the case of two twins locked away in cupboards in Czechoslovakia for the first 7 years
of their lives was reported by Koluchova.

Despite the obvious trauma and maternal deprivation which occurred for an extended period of time, even exceeding the critical period, the
researchers found that with appropriate fostering, the twins made a full psychological recovery.

• effects of maternal deprivation are not always so easy to understand / permanent

Question 67

Outline research into the effects of institutionalisation

Answer 67

Romanian orphan studies : Rutter et al 2007
Wars in Eastern Europe

AIM: To investigate the effects of institutionalisation in a group of 165 Romanian orphans

• longitudal study
• assessed the 165 orphans at age 4,6,11,15 years old in terms of psychological, emotional
  and physical development.
• interviews(?)

-results were compared to 52 children adopted in Britain at roughly the same time (acted as a control group)

Question 68

Outline the findings Rutter et al’s institutionalisation experiment

Answer 68

• majority of orphans were malnourished
• mean IQ was dependent
  upon the age of which the orphans were adopted

DAMAGE TO INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT
e.g : adopted before 6mo had an IQ 25 points higher than those adopted after 2 years of age : demonstrated by Goldman
- adopted after 6mo displayed signs of disinhibited attachment (disorganised attachment)
-before 6mo rarely showed these signs

DISINHIBITED ATTACHMENT
characterised by attention-seeking and affectionate behaviour being shown towards any or all adults, is thought to be the result of having too many caregivers within the critical period of attachment formation, so a secure attachment cannot be developed

Question 69

Outline the conclusion of Rutter et al’s institutionalisation experiment

Answer 69

• importance of adopting orphans at different ages : relative to their rate of recovery

-full recovery made when adoption occurred before the age of 6mo : emotional and intellectual developmment

-conclusions were supported by Bucharest Early intervention project carried out by Zeaneh et al 2005

Question 70

Outline a study supporting Rutter et al’s conclusions

Answer 70

Bucharest Early intervention project carried out by et al 2005

Procedure : researchers used strange situations to assess attachment in 95 children aged 13-31 months who had spent most of their lives in institutional care

• compared to control of 50 : never experienced institutional care

FINDINGS 65% of their sample of 95 orphans displayed signs
of disorganised attachments

compared to only 20% of the healthy,
non-deprived control group.

Question 71

Strengths of Rutter et al’s institutionalisation experiment

Answer 71

longitudinal study : researchers are able to detect developments or changes in the characteristics of both experimental children groups : can be generalised to wider population : valid conclusions

able to study the effects of institutionalisation in isolation: compared to other adoption studies : could study in isolation
- most children were abandoned at birth
-removing the confounding and extraneous variables of PTSD and trauma associated with orphans

• increase confidence places in conclusions drawn : about the effects
  of institutionalisation and the displayed differential rates of recovery.

(shaver’s study)

Question 72

Limitations of Rutter et al’s institutionalisation experiment

Answer 72

focus on short term recovery rather than long term recovery

-a child adopted at 3 y.o and not exhibiting normal levels on intellectual at age 4 does not mean that the child is mentally impaired and will not show normal levels of development in later point in life
-to increase validity of data drawn : better to carry out recovery observation at longer time

criticised for low ecological validity:
- conditions of romanian orphanages are v poor
- orphanages did not
provide any intellectual stimulation for the orphans :larger impact on their intellectual development compared to maternal deprivation as a single cause
-Cases of abuse were also frequently reported : cannot be generalised to other orgphanges : better developed

Question 73

Outline real life applications of Rutter et al’s study

Answer 73

Attachment disorder has recently been recognised as distinct psychiatric disorder and included in the DSM

-children experience disruptions of early attachment : affects emotional and social development

• have no preffered attachment figure :
• inhibitive / reactive : unable to cope in social situations
• disinhibitive attachment : overly friendly

Question 74

Outline the influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships

Answer 74

continuity most likely to have similar attachment type that of our parents :

IWM based off of our first main attachment (primary attachment) : acts as a mental template for our future relationships and how to behave: friends family etc

• effects our expectations of others
  i.e growing up in a traumatic household : difficulties forming attachment w PCG may struggle to form attachments in the future and behave abnormally with them (resist or reject intimacy in their adult relationships)
• insecure resistant : difficult to attach

parenting style influence many parts of life notably Parenting type : Bailey et al

This is why attachment
style tends to be passed on through generations of a family.

Question 75

Research evidence for influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships

Answer 75

P = Hazan and Shaver supported the idea that the quality/type of early attachments have a
significant impact on our ability as adults to form attachments. (in their love quiz experiment)

E = Hazan and Shaver found that those who were securely attached as children had happier and longer lasting relationships, and those who were insecurely attached had more divorces and tended to believe love was rare.

E = This supports the idea that childhood experiences have significant impact on people’s
attitude toward later relationships.

Question 76

strength of Research evidence for influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships (bailey)

Answer 76

P = This is supported by Bailey (2007).

E = They found that the majority of women (out of the 99 studied) had the same attachment
classification both to their babies and their own mothers.

E = This supports the idea of continuity, as suggested by Bowlby. The internal working models
that we develop in response to our first attachment to our primary attachment figure contain our
perceptions of what a normal relationship looks like, and so we seek out such relationships in
accordance with our internal working model.

Question 77

limitation of influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships

Answer 77

P = It is reductionist and deterministic, due to suggesting that the influence of early attachments
is deterministic, so a poor-quality attachment inevitably means that the individual will become
bad parents themselves and be unable to form ‘normal’ romantic relationships and friendships in
adulthood.

E = it suggests that insecurely attached infants are doomed to grow up and have bad adult
relationships, when this is of course not true.

E = There are many cases of insecurely attached children growing to have strong happy
relationships.

Question 78

strength of influence of early attachment on childhood and adult relationships

Answer 78

P = Research support link between early attachment type and success in later relationships.

E = Fraley conducted a meta-analysis of studies- found correlations of up to 0.50 between early
attachment types and later relationships.

Question 79

limitations

Answer 79

• kolunchova - czech kids - IWM - CP

Question 80

reesearch support (simpson)

Answer 80

P = Supported by Simpson et al

E = longitudinal study – participants were studied at 4 key points: infancy, early childhood,
adolescence and adulthood. Attachment types and romantic relationships were assessed at
different stages. Found that securely attached children were more expressive and emotionally
attached in later romantic relationships

E = support claim that expression of emotions in adult romantic relationships can be traced back
to early attachment experiences