Attachment Flashcards
What are the 2 types of caregiver infant interactions ?
- Reciprocity
- Interactional synchrony
What is reciprocity ?
A 2 way behaviour that is produced as a response to the other person’s behaviour.
The caregiver + infant are active contributors in the interaction so are responding to one another.
However, this doesn’t tell us anything about the quality of these interactions (child throwing a toy and caregiver responding)
Brazelton (1979) suggested that it was imported for the development of communication later on.
What is interactional synchrony ?
The timing + pattern of the interaction.
Any interaction that has interactional synchrony is also reciprocal, but the interaction is rhythmic, has a mutual focus, and includes the infant and caregiver mirroring each other’s behaviour.
It also shows their emotions.
This tells us about the quality of the interaction as they move in the same pattern.
How is the overlap between reciprocity and interactional synchrony seen ?
Reciprocity is apart of synchrony
However, synchrony is more about emotion and behaviours.
Meltzoff and Moore’s 1977 research
They carried out an observation on babies as young as 2 weeks old (but Meltzoff repeated this with a baby who was 42 mins old and found the same results)
Adults would show 1/3 expressions, and a hand gesture and the child’s response was filmed and identified by independent observers who didn’t know what the child had just seen.
The behavioural categories included mouth opening, termination of mouth opening, tongue protrusion, termination of tongue protrusion.
Each observer scored the tapes twice so that inter observer reliability could be calculated.
All the scores were greater than 92.
An association was found between the expression/gesture the adult had displayed and the babies actions.
This could be used to show the existence of reciprocity from a very young age.
Which research shows how the level of interactional synchrony helps predict attachment types ?
Isabella et al ‘s 1991 research
Isabella et al ‘s research :
Observed mother-infant interactions at 3,9,12 months and assessed the quality of their attachments using the strange situations and found 2 important findings:
- Good interactional synchrony (well timed + reciprocal + mutually rewarding) leads to secure attachments
- Minimally involved mothers who were unresponsive + intrusive led to insecure attachments
These show that :
1. Interactional synchrony is the biggest predictor of secure attachments and research is now starting to just focus on this rather than reciprocity when looking at caregiver infant interactions
2. An overstimulating mother (shows too much reciprocity) led to insecure attachments
How does research support reciprocity and Interactional synchrony ?
research shows the existence of reciprocity as a type of caregiver-infant interaction from a very early age.
Metzoff and Moore carried out an observation on children as young as 2 weeks old in which adults displayed one of three facial expressions and a handgesture and the child’s response was filmed and identified by independent observers who had no knowledge of what the children had just seen. The behavioural categories were mouth opening, termination of mouth opening, tongue protrusion, termination of tongue protrusion.
An association was found between the expression/gesture the adult displayed and the babies actions, suggesting that the baby was imitating the adult.
This research shows the existence of reciprocity in care-giver infant interactions and that they occur at a very young age, suggesting that reciprocity is an innate behaviour (nature) rather than something that has been learnt (nurture) and so must be a universal phenomena in care-giver infant interactions.
How does research show the use of controlled observations in caregiver infant interactions ?
A strength of caregiver- infant interactions is that most of the research uses controlled observations.
These controlled observations are filmed from multiple angles, recorded, with independent researchers observing the behaviour and the babies don’t know or care that they are being observed.
This ensures that very fine detail of behaviour can be recorded, the films can be watched later, multiple times and the baby’s behaviour does not change in response to being observed.
This means that the findings into caregiver-infant interactions are valid and so gives us faith in the concepts of reciprocity and interactional synchrony themselves and with inter-rater reliability as high as 0.92 also shows the reliability of the observers.
How does care giver and infant interactions research lack reliability ?
A weakness of the research in reciprocity such as Meltzoff and Moore’s study is the issue of replicibility.
Research such as Koepke et al (1983) have failed to replicate the findings of Meltzoff and Moore’s study. Koepke did not find a clear association between infant behaviour and that of the adult models
Furthermore, Marian et al (1996) found that infants could not distinguish between live and videotaped interactions with their mothers, suggesting that they were not actually responding to the adult
These studies have failed to replicate Meltzoff and Moore’s findings, therefore their results may lack reliability and may have limited usefulness in explaining caregiver infant interactions
What are the issues/debates on research into caregiver infant interactions (socially sensitive) ?
Research into caregiver-infant interactions has said to be socially sensitive.
Interactional synchrony suggests that in order for secure/strong attachments to be formed, the mother needs to present from birth to develop this sensitive responsiveness to their child.
Children whose mothers return to work soon after the child’s birth restrict the opportunities for achieving interactional synchrony.
This research has implications for certain social groups (e.g. working mothers) as this suggests their attachments may not be as secure if work is preventing interactional synchrony from taking place.
The 4 stages of attachment were based off of which study ?
Schaffer and Emerson’s 1964 longitudinal study in Glasgow
What was the method of the longitudinal study ? (S+E)
60 babies (31 male, 29 female) from Glasgow the majority from skilled working class backgrounds.
They were visited at home every month for the 1st year and then at 18 months.
Mothers were interviewed to measure the infants level of attachment asking questions about how their infants responded to 7 situations e.g. adult leaving the room (separation anxiety).
observations were conducted to investigate the level of distress the presence of a stranger caused (stranger anxiety).
What were the findings of the longitudinal study ? (S+E)
Specific attachment (signs of separation anxiety) 50% of infants by 7 months,
80% by 40 weeks
and almost 30% displayed multiple attachments.
By one year 78% had developed multiple attachments
with 33% having five or more multiple attachment figures.
What are the 4 stages of attachment and at which ages do they start/end ?
- Pre attachment (birth to 3 months)
- Indiscriminate attachment (3 to 7/8 months)
- Discriminate attachment (7/8 months onwards)
- Multiple attachments (9 months onwards)
What is the pre attachment stage ?
Babies smile more + are more sociable from 6 weeks
Can tell people apart + like human company
Form stronger attachments, but these don’t progress much as they can easily be comforted by any individual.
No fear of strangers shown.
What is the indiscriminate attachment stage ?
recognise bonds with their caregivers through reciprocal + interactional synchrony
their behaviour to inanimate objects (teddies) and animate ones (faces) are similar
towards the end, they start to be more content in the presence of peole and are more easily calmed by familiar adults
no stranger anxiety
What is the discriminate attachment stage ?
Show separation anxiety, ‘protest’ by crying when primary caregivers leave.
Have now formed a specific attachment.
Show stranger anxiety
What are multiple attachments ?
Formed shortly after forming specific attachments.
29% form this within a month (according to the study) towards friends/family.
Evaluation of the stages of attachment : pre attachment stage may be incorrect
it assumes that the infant’s emotional responses are not directed to a specific person, but research shows this might not be the case.
Bushnell (1989) presented 2 day old babies with either their mother’s face or the face of a female stranger until they spent 20 seconds focusing on them.
2/3 infants preferred their mother’s face over the stranger’s.
This shows that schaffer’s pre-attachment stage is incorrect, as the 2 day babies world have been at the start of the stage.
shows that even young children respond to one specific person in a unique way.
Evaluation of the stages of attachment : stages are based on longitudinal research
this is a strength of the stages.
Schaffer observed the Glasgow babies once a month for a year, and then at 18 months
This gave him time to clearly observe the stages the babies went through and at what time.
This enhances the research’s validity as the research is longitudinal.
This allows us to improve our understanding of the dynamic processes that shape a child’s development.
Evaluation of the stages of attachment : stages aren’t generalisable to all babies
research was only carried out on 60 working class babies fam Glasgow.
there was a limited number of babies, the study was limited to one country and from a limited background.
this can be further supported when looking at attachments in same cultural contexts around the world as multiple caregivers could be the norm.
many psychologists believe that babies form multiple altachmends from the outset (pre - attachment stage)
so the stages wouldn’t apply for these children.
this makes us question the universality of his stages of attachment.
Evaluation of the stages of attachment : data could have been unreliable
mathers reporting their infant interactions could have been biased towards displaying themselves in a positive light.
some could have been less responsive to their child’s needs, thus less likely to report them to prevent themselves from being seen badly.
demand characteristics may have occurred as they could have told the researcher what they wanted to hear; lacks validity.
however: mundane realism occurred (everyday conditions) , so conclusions could be argued
to have a high validity.
what is the role of the father in today’s society ?
traditionally, fathers played secondary attachment figures (according to S+E).
they played traditional roles as the bread earner while mothers stayed home + created close bonds.
What did Bowlby’s concept of monotropy suggest for fathers ?
Babies needed constant care of the mother for healthy social development.
fathers should provide an economic function rather than an emotional one.
However, there is increasing recognition for the role of the father (ONS reporting that there has been an increase in mothers with dependent children in work + cultural expectations changing in the West and expect fathers to play a bigger part).
What did Lamb suggest (1997) ?
There was little connection between the amount of time spent with the child and attachment.
The interaction itself may be more important.
Fathers are also preferred when children are happy and want stimulation, yet mothers are preferred when they are distressed and seek comfort.
Children who have secure relationships with their fathers do better on every measure of child development
How do gender stereotypes affect the role of the father ?
Some cultures with this means the role of the father is affected as it’s seen as feminine to be sensitive to a child’s needs and encourages masculine behaviour.
Psychological + biological reasons for the role of the father ?
Some explanations see the father as less psychologically equipped to form close bonds, unlike the mother.
This is due to them lacking the emotional sensitivity required, which Bowlby said was more important that the time spent with the child.
Women produce oestrogen (promotes caring behaviour + sensitivity) while males don’t.
What does White et al ‘s research support for the role of the father ?
The role of the father is seen more as a playmate to encourage physical activity, challenging situations, problem solving, through placing cognitive demands on the child.
What are 3 factors which affect the father-infant relationships ?
- More secure attachments were apparent in fathers who are sensitive to their child’s needs.
- The type of attachments father had with their own parents leads to a similar attachment with their children.
- Level of intimacy mother and father shows and level of support the father gives in co parenting.
What does Paquettes’ research suggest on the role of the father ?
2004
Fathers are more likely to establish a risk taking behaviour in their children than mothers as they encourage more physical play.
What does Field’s (1978) research suggest ?
This is not because fathers are not as capable as mothers, but they are not given the chance to develop these skills.
Field’s research (1978) procedures and findings :
Field filmed 4 month old babies in face. to - face interactions with primary caregivers (mothers), secondary caregivers (fathers) and primary caregivers (fathers).
They found that primary caregiver fathers , like mothers, spent more time smiling, imitating infants than secondary caregiver fathers.
This behaviour is important in the building of attachments.
It suggests that fathers are as capable as mothers of being a sensitive primary caregiver.
It is the level of responsiveness, and not the parents’ gender, that is important.
evaluation on the importance of the role of the father : lack of research to make a firm conclusion
there have been inconsistent findings:
psychologists cant easily answer the question on what is the role the father.
firm conclusions cannot be drawn.
researchers are interested in different questions.
some are interested in understanding the role fathers have as secondary attachment figures ( fathers have a distinct role ) whilst others see the father’s role as a primary attachment figure ( fathers can take on a maternal role )
evaluation on the importance of the role of the father : socially sensitive
some research can have serious positive/negative implications for all parents.
research showing differences between mothers and fathers can have negative effects.
Bowlby’s monotropic concept has led to the idea that mothers should stay home.
1994 : Erica Burman and other feminists state it places a huge burden of responsibility on mothers.
It blames mothers if anything goes wrong in the child’s life.
It is partially responsible for the stigma full time fathers often face.
evaluation on the importance of the role of the father : fathers are less suitable as primary caregivers
Hardy (1999) found supporting evidence which suggested fathers were less likely than mothers to detect low levels of emotional distress.
However, Lamb’s evidence found fathers who became the main care providers able to quickly adapt adapt and develop greater sensitivity to the child’s needs,
This suggests that sensitivity and responsiveness to the child is not a biological ability limited to women.
the father’s role may be due to environmental factors.
evaluation on the importance of the role of the father : research focuses on single mothers from poor backgrounds
Weakness : higher levels of aggression and poor academic performance could be argued to be down to social economic standing and not the absence of fathers, leading to more problematic behaviours.
Many studies have been based on correlational research and so we can’t infer cause and effect between the father’s relationship and problematic behaviour observed in children.
It may be that other variables affect their developments (being bullied for not having a father rather than the lack of relationship itself)
What are multiple attachments ?
These are attachments to multiple people.
Research has shown that babies can form multiple attachments once they have formed a specific attachment to their main caregiver.
Evidence for multiple attachments - Schaffer 1964
29% of infants develop multiple attachments within a month of developing specific attachments (by 40 weeks).
78% of children have multiple attachments by the age of 1.
33% out of the 78% have 5 or more attachments by the age of 1.
Evidence for multiple attachments - Schaffer’s stages
He believes that a child had to go through the other 3 stages to reach the multiple attachment stage.
This is the last stage from 9 months onwards.
Evidence for multiple attachments - Bowlby’s research
His idea of monotropy : babies have 1 key attachment figure (usually mother)
Secondary attachments come next (father/siblings) but these multiple attachments are not as important as the primary one.
Evaluation of multiple attachments - it’s unclear when the multiple attachment occurs
Schaffer + Bowlby believe this occurs after a baby forms a specific attachment.
However, some psychologists believe that in some cultures, multiple attachments occur from the outset and not as late as 9 months.
Suggests that the timing of Schaffer’s stages is incorrect or the stages can’t be generalised to all cultures.
It may be that the timing of these attachments differ in cultures.
Evaluation of multiple attachments - disagreements on the importance of multiple attachments
Bowlby believed these weren’t as important as primary ones.
However, Rutter (1995) saw all attachments being equal, so he believed that primary + secondary attachments didn’t exist.
All of these attachments give the child an idea of how relationships work (IWM), and are of equal importance.
Evaluation of multiple attachments - economic implications
Sagi et al (1994) looked at infants raised in a kibbutz with multiple caregivers but family-based sleeping arrangements.
They found strong attachment to the mother, with 80% securely attached and no avoidant attachment.
Findings align with Rutter’s belief that all attachments are equally important.
Suggests that multiple attachments may strengthen primary attachments.
Parents can work without harming children’s emotional development.
Positive economic implications for families and the economy.
What were the 2 types of animal studies in attachments ?
- Lorenz (1935)
- Harlow (1959)
Ethnologists conducted animal studies (early 20th century) to understand human mother-infant attachments.
Aim of Lorenz ‘s study :
To investigate the mechanisms of imprinting, where bird species mobile from birth to form attachments to the first moving object they see.
Procedure of Lorenz ‘ s study :
He split a clutch of grey lag goose eggs into 2 batches:
1. Naturally hatched by mother
2. In an incubator with Lorenz as the object
He recorded their behaviour.
He marked the gooslings and placed them under an upturned box, then removed it and recorded their behaviour.
Findings of Lorenz’s study :
The incubator group followed Lorenz everywhere.
The control group followed their mother, even when both groups were mixed.
There was a critical period (4-25 hrs depending on the species) and if imprinting didn’t occur, the chicks didn’t attach to a mother figure.
He subsequently reported that the gooslings imprinting on humans would later try to mate with them.
Aim of Harlow’s study :
To determine whether food or close comfort was the important factor in attachment.
Procedure of Harlow’s study :
He placed 19 baby rhesus monkeys in cages with 2 surrogate mothers : one harsh wire mother, one soft towelling mother.
4/16 monkeys were used in each of the 4 conditions.
The amount of time spent with each mother + feeding time was recorded.
Monkeys were frightened with a loud noise to test for mother preference during stress.
Large case was used for testing and degree of exploration.
What were the 4 conditions used in Harlow’s study ?
- Wire mother produced milk, towel mother no milk
- Wire mother no milk, towel mother produces milk
- Wire mother produces milk
- Towel mother produces milk
Findings of Harlow’s study :
When given the choice, monkeys preferred the towel mother (regardless of whether she produced milk).
Monkeys stretched across the wire mother to feed whilst clinging onto the towel mother.
Monkeys with only wire mother showed stress + had diarrhoea.
When frightened by the noise, monkeys clung onto the towelling mother.
In large case conditions, monkeys with the towel mother explored more + visited their mother more often.
How did the monkeys in Harlow’s study act in adulthood ?
Monkeys in some of the experiments were followed in adulthood.
Severe consequences were found :
- more aggressive
- unskilled at mating
- less sociable
As mothers, some of them neglected their young + attacked them (almost killing them in some cases).
Evaluation on animal studies - can’t be generalised to human infants
May be less appropriate to generalise Lorenz’s findings as the attachment system of birds is less complex and less emotion is involved than of mammals.
Harlow’s monkeys are more similar to humans than geese are.
Green (1994) states that on a biological level, mammals have the same brain structure as humans.
The only differences are the size and number of connections, making it easier to generalise.
However, neither sample are human, so it is argued that we cannot generalise either to human attachments.
Evaluation on animal studies - research is useful
Findings have still been useful to understanding human attachment.
Lorenz’s idea of a critical period influenced Bowlby’s research.
It led to the idea that human infants need to attach by the age of 2 (or there would be serious long term consequences).
Harlow’s research showed the effects of neglecting infants and potential long term consequences of poor attachment in childhood for future relationships.
This influenced Bowlby’s IWM.
Evaluation on animal studies - support for Harlow’s findings
S+E found that infants were not attached to those that fed them, but those who were more sensitive to their needs.
This has links to the cloth mother as it provided contact comfort + sensitivity to the monkey’s needs during distress.
Evaluation on animal studies - support for Lorenz’ s findings (Guiton 1966)
Increases the reliability of Lorenz’s study.
Guiton showed how leghorn chicks would become attached to yellow rubber gloves when used to feed them.
This shows how imprinting not only occurs with living objects, but any objects that are moving within the critical period (2 days).
The chicks would also try to mate with gloves later on in life.
Evaluation on animal studies - ethics vs significance to humans
The use of animals in research can be questioned on ethical grounds.
Could be argued that animals have a right to not be researched on.
The pursuit of academic conclusions for human benefits can be seen as detrimental to non human species.
However, it wouldn’t be possible to carry the research on human infants and the findings have already been useful (real life applications).
This means we have to think about a cost benefit analysis of the harm caused to the monkeys versus the benefit to our understanding of human attachment.
What are the 2 main explanations of attachment ?
- Learning theory (nurture)
- Bowlby ‘s monotropic theory (nature)
What is learning theory ?
A behavioural explanation.
Focuses solely on behaviour : what people do instead of what they think.
Behaviourists consider all behaviour, so attachment can be explained using classical and operant conditioning.
What are the 2 concepts used in learning theory ?
- Classical conditioning
- Operant conditioning
What is Bowlby’s monotropic theory ?
Based on Harlow and Lorenz’s work.
An evolutionary explanation of attachment.
Attachment is an innate system that is biologically programmed into babies from birth.
What is classical conditioning ?
Learning through association.
Food (uncontrolled stimulus) naturally produces a sense of pleasure in a child (unconditioned response).
The person who feeds the child initially (neutral stimulus) provides no natural response.
However, over time, the ‘feeder’ provides the pleasure associated with food.
Pleasure now becomes a conditioned response.
The ‘feeder’ is now the conditioned stimulus.
This association between an individual and a sense of pleasure is the attachment bond.
What is operant conditioning ? Dollars + Miller 1950
All humans have primary motives (e.g., hunger). Stimuli that satisfy these drives are primary reinforcers.
A baby’s primary drive is hunger, leading them to seek food to reduce this discomfort.
The caregiver provides food, satisfying the baby’s hunger, and becomes a primary reinforcer.
As the caregiver consistently provides food, they become a secondary reinforcer, and the baby forms an attachment to them.
The baby learns that crying gets the caregiver’s attention and food, reinforcing attachment behaviours like separation distress.
The caregiver is conditioned. The infant’s crying is negatively reinforced by the caregiver feeding them to stop the distress.
The caregiver is positively reinforced when the baby smiles after being fed. This reinforcement strengthens the caregiver-infant bond.
what is monotropy ?
infants have 1 special emotional bond (biological mother usually).
this relationship is more important than any others.
he believed that the more time spent with the primary attachment figure, the better.
what abbreviation is used for Bowlby’s theory and what does it stand for ?
Cr. I. I. M. P. S.
Critical period
Innate programming
Internal working model
Monotropy
Proximity
Social releasers
what are mirror neurones ?
they mimic other people’s behaviour
what is the other abbreviation used for Bowlby’s theory and what does it stand for ?
A.S.C.M.I
adaptive
social releasers
critical period
monotropy
internal working model
Bowlby’s theory - adaptive
They give our species an adaptive advantage, making us more likely to survive.
this is because if an infant has an attachment to a caregiver, they are kept safe/warm + given food.
What are the 2 principles Bowlby put forward ?
- The law of continuity
- The law of accumulated separation
What is the law of continuity ?
The more constant/predictable a child’s care, the better quality of their attachment.
What is the law of accumulated separation ?
The effects of separation from every mother add up ‘and the safest dose is therefore a zero dose’
What is proximity ?
Babies want proximity to their mothers for safety as it protects them from harm.
Security + secure attachment = survival
