attachment Flashcards
what is the behaviourist view of attachment?
pleasure derived from food is the basis of the mother-infant bond
- food = unconditioned stimulus
- mother = conditioned stimulus linked with food
what is Harry Harlow’s monkey experiment? did the results support or undermine the behaviourist view of attachment?
- tested preference of monkeys for wire mother with food vs cloth mother without food
- found that the monkeys sought comfort from the cloth mother, and only went to the wire mother to get food when necessary
- opposed the behaviourist idea that the infant-mother bond is the result of conditioning based off their need for food (if this was the case, they would prefer the wire mother who provided them with food)
who is John Bowlby? what was his attachment theory?
- psychoanalyst who studied the emotional distress of orphaned children in ww2
- children are biologically predisposed to develop attachment to caregivers as a means of increasing chances of survival
- development and quality of child’s attachment are highly dependent on their experiences with caregivers
what are the features of the attachment system?
- proximity maintenance and seeking (adaptive motivation to stay close to caregiver)
- separation distress
- safe haven (caregiver provides comfort when distressed)
- secure base (caregiver provides sense of security from which child can explore the environment)
who is Mary Ainsworth?
- came up with Strange Situation procedure
- provided empirical evidence of attachment theory
list the 4 types of attachment styles and their frequencies
- secure (40%)
- avoidant (15%)
- resistant (10%)
- disorganized (15%)
how do securely attached infants react to the strange situation?
- uses parent as a secure base
- upset at separation
- seeks parent at reunion and is easily soothes by the parent
how do avoidant attached infants react to the strange situation?
- readily separates to explore
- avoids or ignores the parent when they return after separation
- does not prefer the parent to the stranger
how do resistant attached infants react to the strange situation?
- does not separate to explore
- wary of the stranger even when the parent is present
- extremely upset at the separation
- not soothed by the parent and resists the parent’s attempt to soothe
how do disorganized attached infants react to the strange situation?
- often freezes and dissociates
- behaviour is confused and contradictory
- seem to want to approach caregiver but sees them as a source of fear
what are the determinants of attachment style?
- parenting/parental sensitivity
what are the common traits/behaviour of parents of securely attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?
- parents are generally supportive and have sensitive reactions to the child
- parents are affectionate and express frequent positive emotions toward the child
- parents initiate frequent close contact with the child
- child learns that proximity seeking is a good strategy to soothe distress
what are the common traits/behaviours of parents of avoidantly attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?
- parents are consistently insensitive to child’s signals
- parents avoid close eye contact or reject the child’s bid for attention
- parents may be angry or impatient
- child learns that proximity seeking is not a good strategy to soothe distress; deactivates attachment system and relies on self-soothing
what are the common traits/behaviours of parents of resistantly attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?
- parents are inconsistently supportive/sensitive in reacting to child’s distress
- parents seem overwhelmed with caregiving
- child learns that proximity is sometimes a good strategy to soothe distress; hyperactivates the attachment system leading to excessive proximity-seeking when distressed
what are the common traits/behaviours of parents of disorganized attached children? what does the child learn from these behaviours?
- parents behaviour confuses or frightens the child
- parents may be harsh or abusive
- parents often struggle with severe mental health issues
- child learns that proximity seeking often results in feeling scared; caregiver is extremely unpredictable and cannot be trusted
