Attachment Flashcards
1
Q
Who were the 2 psychologists investigating attachment in animals?
A
Harlow 1959 & Lorenz 1935
2
Q
What did Harlow investigate?
A
Monkey’s attachment - whether they prefer food or comfort
3
Q
What did Lorenz investigate?
A
Imprinting in Geese and whether it affects who they attach to from birth
4
Q
What did Harlow do in his study?
A
Took baby monkey’s away from their parents and put them in cages with a cloth mother and a wire mother. Wire mother supplied food and cloth mother supplied comfort. They were scared to see who they would run too etc
5
Q
What did Harlow find?
A
That monkey’s preferred contact comfort to food. They ran to the cloth mother when scared and spent 23/24 hours on their cloth mother a day. If you were raised by a cloth mother you were more social
6
Q
What was the overall finding from Harlows study?
A
Attachment does not develop due to being fed but due to comfort
7
Q
What are some strengths of Harlows study? (3)
A
Lab experiment so reliable - less extraneous variables, all monkeys had same experiences increasing reliability, monkeys are a close species to humans so we can compare the results
8
Q
What are some weaknesses of Harlows study? (1)
A
Breaks ethical guidelines as cannot consent and deliberately caused harm, caused long term distress
9
Q
What did Lorenz do in his study?
A
Studied geese in their natural environment, split geese eggs into 2 and marked them, when close to hatching half were hatched naturally and half put in an upturned box and released so Lorenz was the first person they saw. Had to happen 4-25 hours after birth
10
Q
What did Lorenz find?
A
The naturally hatched geese followed their mother and the unnaturally hatched followed Lorenz, whoever they saw first they attached too
11
Q
What was the overall finding from Lorenzs study?
A
Imprinting is important to attachment
12
Q
What are the strengths of Lorenzs study? (2)
A
Observation was done in natural environment so increases ecological validity, found that attachment is not a learned response but built in in order to assist survival
13
Q
What are the weaknesses of Lorenzs study? (4)
A
Reliability is low, generalisability is very low, may not apply to human infants as geese can walk and feed straight from birth but humans are helpless for months, unethical ins some ways as it is irreverisable
14
Q
What are the 2 main theories of attachment in human infants?
A
Learning theory and Bowlby’s monotropy theory
15
Q
What does the learning theory believe?
A
We learn attachment through experience in our environment (the behaviours we learn). It is not something we do naturally without stimuli
16
Q
What are the 2 types of conditioning in the learning theory?
A
Classical conditioning and operant conditioning
17
Q
What are these 2 types of conditioning?
A
How we learn
18
Q
What does classical conditioning believe we learn through?
A
Association (we attach as we have learnt to associate between caregiver and the pleasurable feeling of being full) WE ATTACH AS WE KNOW WE GET FED
19
Q
What is the unconditioned stimulus in classical conditioning?
A
Milk
20
Q
What is the neutral stimulus in classical conditioning?
A
Mother
21
Q
What is the conditioned response in classical conditioning?
A
You have now learnt to respond to your mother in a certain way as you know you will receive milk
22
Q
What does operant conditioning believe we learn through?
A
Consequences of our behaviour
23
Q
What are the 2 types of reinforcement in operant conditioning?
A
Positive and negative
24
Q
What is positive reinforcement?
A
Being rewarded for good behavior, i.e pocket money
25
What is negative reinforcement?
To stop a negative outcome happening, i.e not being grounded as you tidied your room
26
What do the 2 types of reinforcement increase the chances of?
The good behavior happening again
27
What is a study to support classical conditioning?
Pavlov's dogs (cutting a dogs saliva glands to see when they salivate, dogs salivate to food which is a biological response, after a while when the dog sees the same researcher they begin to salivate before food as they have paired the 2 together
28
What is the positive and negative reinforcement of a baby crying and then getting its bottle?
Positive - baby gets food
| Negative - mother stops baby crying and this makes her happy
29
What is the primary reinforcer?
Food (whatever the baby wants)
30
What is the secondary reinforcer?
Mother (the baby has learnt the mother gets food for them)
31
What is cupboard love?
The idea that we become attached to those who feed us
32
What are the criticisms of the learning theory of attachment? (3)
HARLOWS STUDY, counter evidence from human research (schaffer and emerson found babies formed a primary attachment to mothers even though others fed them), learning theory ignores reciprocity and interactional synchrony
33
What are the strengths of the learning theory of attachment? (1)
Classical conditioning is known to be part of what builds attachment
34
What does ASCMI stand for in Bowbly's monotropic theory of attachment?
Adaptive, social releasers, critical period, monotropy, internal working model
35
What is Bowlby's idea in the monotropic theory of attachment?
That attachment is an innate feature which we inherit in order for us to survive
36
Who does the monotropic theory of attachment say we attach to?
1 person (MONO) our mother, person who cares for us the most
37
What does adaptive in the monotropic theory of attachment mean?
Evolutionary means. An infant has an attachment to primary caregiver as they keep us safe, feed us and keep us warm which keeps us alive
38
What does social releasers in the monotropic theory of attachment mean?
Babies have social releasers (physical and behavioral) which makes the caregiver want to attach to them - 2 WAY STREET
39
What does critical period in the monotropic theory of attachment mean?
If you dont form an attachment within 2 and 1/2 years you will have long term attachment problems - unlikely you will form an attachment with anyone
40
What does monotropy in the monotropic theory of attachment mean?
Infants only form 1 attachment and this is called monotropy. Most likely to be the mother
41
What does internal working model in the monotropic theory of attachment mean?
When we attach to 1 person we develop an internal working model - special schema for relationships. ALL FUTURE RELATIONSHIPS WILL BE BASED ON THE INTERNAL WORKING MODEL OF THAT CHILD
42
What does Bowlby believe about the attachments we form?
They are a hierarchy, mother attachment is most important
43
What is the law of continuity?
The law that the more constant and predictable a childs care the better quality of attachment
44
What is the law of accumulated separation?
The effects of every separation from mother adds up so therefore 'the safest dose is a zero dose'
45
What is Bowlby's continuity hypothesis?
A child will stop communicating their distress to a parent who is unavailable or inconstant from the age of 12 months, This will then affect their ability to form future relationships
46
What are the strengths of Bowlby's monotropic theory of attachment? (2 studys & 1)
Tronick et al 1992 study supports montropy (even though in Zaire kids had multiple caretakers who breast fed them their mother was their main attachment) Hazen and Shaver 1987 study supports internal working model ('love quiz' on 620 people, infants who were securely attached tended to have happier lasting adult relationships)
GOOD ECOLOGICAL VALIDITY AS IN NATRUAL ENVIRONMENT
47
What are the weaknesses for Bowbly's theory of attachment? (2)
Mixed evidence for monotropy - Schaffer and Emerson found that babies could form multiple attachments not just 1 like Bowlby believed. MOTHERS WERE ASKED TO COMMENT ON CHILDS BEHAVIOUR WHICH MAY NOT BE ACCURATE SO LACKS RELIABILITY
48
Who developed the Strange Situation?
Mary Ainsworth alongside Bowlby
49
What does the strange situation test?
The quality of attachment to a primary caregiver and the types of attachment found
50
What is proximity seeking in the strange situation?
If the baby stays close to its mother
51
What is exploration and secure base behavior in the strange situation?
If the child is confident to explore, if it has then it has a good attachment
52
What is stranger anxiety in the strange situation?
Babies anxiety when a stranger approachs
53
What is separation anxiety in the strange situation?
Protest at separation from the caregiver
54
If a baby cries when its mother leaves what is this called?
Separation protest
55
What is response to reunion in the strange situation?
How the baby reacts when reunited with mother figure
56
Name the 8 steps to the Strange Situation
1) mother and baby, the experimenter leaves them to play. 2) mother and baby are alone and the baby plays
3) stranger enters and mother leaves
4) stranger tries to comfort baby
5) mother returns and stranger leaves
6) mother leaves so infant is alone
7) stranger returns and tries to comfort baby
8) mother returns and stranger leaves
57
What are the 3 types of attachment to come out of the strange situation?
Type B - Secure attachment
Type A - Insecure avoidant
Type C - Insecure resistant
58
What are the percentages for the 3 types of attachment?
Secure - 60-70%. Avoidant 20-25%. Resistant 10%.
59
What is a secure attachment?
The child explores but regularly goes back to mother. Shows moderate separation and stranger anxiety.
60
What is an insecure avoidant attachment?
The child explores freely, does not seek proximity, shows little or no reaction when mother leaves and little contact when she returns. Shows little stranger anxiety
61
What is an insecure resistant attachment?
Intense distress on stranger and separation anxiety, when mother returns however she is rejected and the baby is not soothed easily
62
What are the strengths of the strange situation? (3)
High reliability as in a controlled condition. A good application as the procedures are the same for each child, the 3 types of attachment are used widely nowdays
63
What are the weaknesses of the strange situation? (4)
May not be generalisable as Mary Ainsworth study was in the US, mother may show demand characteristics and be more caring towards child so lacks ecological validity, only measures relationship with 1 person, ethical issues
64
What is the key study of cultural variations?
Van IJzendoorn & Kroonenburg 1998
65
What does Van IJzendoorn & Kroonenburg's study look at?
The proportions of secure, insecure avoidant and insecure resistant attachment across a range of countries - looked at differences within the same countries too
66
How many studies did Van IJzendoorn & Kroonenburg look at across 8 countries?
32 - 1990 children
67
What was the most common attachment type found in all countries?
Secure
68
What was overall the least common type of attachment found?
Insecure resistant
69
Was more variation found between individual countries or between different countries?
150% greater variation in the same countries
70
What did Simonella 2014 conduct a study about?
To see if children nowadays have the same types of attachment previously found. STUDY IN ITALY - assessed 76 12 month olds using strange situation
71
What did Simonella find in the study?
50% secure attachment - rate dropping maybe as increasing number of mothers with young children work long hours and use professional childcare
72
What does Simonellas study suggest about cultural changes?
They can make a dramatic difference to patterns of secure and insecure attachments
73
What did Jin et Al 2012 find in their strange situation study in Korea?
Results similar to Van IJzendoorn & Kroonenburg's study in Japan - may be because these countries have similar child-rearing styles
74
What do these cultural variations studies support?
Bowlby's idea that attachment is innate and universal as secure attachment is the universal norm.
75
What are the strengths of cultural variation studies? (1)
Large samples - increasing internal validity reducing the impact of anonymous results.
76
What are the weaknesses of cultural variation studies?
Samples can be unrepresentative of cultures as studies assessed different countries not cultures. The method of assessment is biased as the strange situation is designed by an american based on a British theory. Lacks validity- IF THE BULK OF RESEARCH LACKS VALIDITY THEN ALL THE STUDIES DO TOO
77
What is Schaffer and Emerson's study 1964?
Glasgow Babes - this study developed the stages of attachment
78
What sort of study was Schaffer and Emersons?
Longitudinal study - research which lasts weeks, months or years
79
How many babies did Schaffer and Emerson study?
60 from skilled working class families
80
What did Schaffer and Emerson do in their study?
Followed babies for 2 years recorded observation, observed every 4 weeks when a year old and then once at 18 months. Used separation anxiety in 7 everyday situations (leaving baby in pram outside shop/house) used stranger anxiety to see reactions to unfamiliar adults
81
What are the strengths of Schaffer and Emersons STUDY? (1)
Ecological validity is higher than strange situation as they are in their natural environment
82
What are the weaknesses of Schaffer and Emersons STUDY? (3)
Limited sample as only skilled working class families, low reliability as in natural environment and cannot rely on results, can question ethical issues (consent & distress)
83
What did Schaffer and Emerson find?
Babies developed attachment in stages, found babies 25-32 weeks started showing stranger anxiety, attachment was strongest with who was most interactive and caring, not who was there the most, found multiple attachments came after 1 initial attachment
84
What are the 4 stages and age of Schaffer and Emersons stages of attachment?
Asocial stage (0-6 weeks) Indiscriminate attachment phase (6 weeks - 6 months) Specific Attachment stage (7-11 months) Multiple attachments (9+ months)
85
What is the asocial stage?
Babies smiling and crying is not directed to anyone in particular, no recognition of individual people, learn to discriminate people rather than objects through sound and smell
86
What is the indiscriminate attachment phase?
Attention sought from different individuals, general sociability, comforted by anyone, no stranger or separation anxiety, at 3 months begin to see difference between familiar and unfamiliar people
87
What is the specific attachment phase?
Starts to show stranger and separation anxiety, strong attachment to 1 individual, start to see separation protest
88
What is the multiple attachment stage?
Strong emotional ties with 1 person, but start to form with other care-givers (i.e father), fear of strangers starts to weaken and by 18 months most children have multiple attachments MOTHER IS STILL STRONGEST
89
What are the strengths of Schaffer and Emersons THEORY?
Barely any.... ASK EMMA
90
What are the weaknesses of Schaffer and Emersons theory? (3)
Stages based on study but study not representative, all children may not go through the same stages, may be a problem with how individual stages are assessed
91
What theory does Schaffer and Emersons theory disagree with?
Bowlby's as Schaffer and Emerson demonstrated you can have multiple attachments but Bowlby believes it is a hierachy
92
What percentage of infants have formed attachments with their father after 18 months?
75%
93
What did Rutter argue in 1995 argue?
That all attachments are of equal importance, agreed with Bowlby that all these attachments join together to develop an internal working model.
94
What does Rutter believe the fathers role is?
Similiar to the mothers from a very early age but relationship is more centered around play
95
What does Rutter believe the more time the baby & father spend together does?
More important than what they do
96
What does a high quality relationship with your father correlate to?
The number of friends the infant has at pre-school
97
What 4 things affect a child and fathers relationship?
Third degree of sensitivity (a father picking up on infants needs will be more securely attached) Type of attachment to his own parents will influence the way he parents, maternal intimacy between father and partner, supportive co-parenting affects attachment
98
What does Geiger 1996 believe about the fathers role in attachment?
Fathers interactions are more exciting than mothers, mothers more nurturing - supports idea of fathers being more of a playmate than caregiver
99
What did Grossman 2002 do a study on?
Longitudinal study looking at both parents, looked at childs behaviors and relationship quality into their teens
100
What did Grossman find?
Quality of infants attachment to mothers not fathers was related to childs relationships into adolescence
Suggests - fathers attachment less important &
fathers play a different role in attachment
101
What does Field argue the key to attachment is?
The level of responsiveness not gender of the parent - primary/secondary caregiver father's can have same importance in childs relationships as mothers
102
What is reciprocity?
When behavior is matched during an interaction, a direct repsonse between caregiver and baby
103
What are babies alert phases?
Signals that show they are ready for interaction (crying) - mothers usually respond to this alert
104
How does reciprocity believe an attachment is formed?
Baby and mother always matching each others behavior (mother smiles so baby smiles) forms a strong attachment
105
Melzoff's and Moore's study 1977 supported the idea of reciprocity as they found what?
Babies aged even 2-3 weeks tended to mimic facial expressions showing that we are born with an INNATE ABILITY TO IMITATE WHICH IS IMPORTANT FOR ATTACHMENT
106
What was Tronick's study on reciprocity 1977?
Still face experiment - baby and mothers coping each others expressions then mother turns away and baby becomes distressed about lack of involvement from mother
107
What does Tronick's study show?
That babies expect their actions to be recipricated
108
What is interactional synchrony?
A mother and babies speech and behavior becomes synchronized due to a strong attachment (not copied like reciprocity) MORE TIME THEY SPEND TOGETHER MORE SYNCHRONIZED THEY BECOME
109
What was Brazletons study 1979?
Interactions between baby and mother were video tapes and mothers asked to pull different facical expressions and then frozen face, babies became motionless when mothers had frozen face showing interactional synchrony works between caregiver &n infant to maintain and strengthen attachment bond
110
What are the strengths for the studies on reciprocity and interactional synchrony? (2)
Comparing results as more than one person observed them lab experiment so high ecological validity
111
What are the weaknesses for the studies on reciprocity and interactional synchrony? (2)
Subjective as different researchers may have different opinions therefore lacks reliability, there may be a lack of natural responses from baby as an unnatural setting
112
What is deprivation?
Describes when an infant has formed attachment but it has either been perminantly or temporarily disrupted
113
What is institutionalisation?
Describes infants who are raised in care homes from an early age
114
Who developed the theory of maternal deprivation hypothesis?
Bowlby (BEFORE MONOTROPIC THEORY)
115
What is maternal deprivation?
Failure to develop an attachment - may be because of loss or separation from mother
116
What did Bowlby argue you need continual presence from a mother for?
Essential for normal psychological development of babies up to 2 years both intellectually and emotionally
117
What things does Bowlby believe a child will go through if they do not have continual presence from a mother?
Delinquency (anti-social behavior), reduced IQ, depression and affectionless psychopathy (inability to show affection/concern to others)
118
What does Bowlby believe about intellectual development?
If you dont form an attachment in the critical period you will be mentally retarded having an abnormally low IQ
119
What does Bowlby believe about emotional development?
Related to affectionless psychopathy
120
What is Bowlby's study to do with maternal deprivation hypothesis?
Bowlby's 44 thieves (1951)
121
What is Bowlby's 44 thieves study?
Investigating separation from mothers in early life affected later life behavioral problems. 88 children refereed to a child guidance counselor, 44 children were thieves (experimental group) 44 were emotionally disturbed (control group)
122
What did Bowlby find in the 44 thieves study?
17 of thieves were separated from mother before age of 2, only 2 in control group. 14 of these 17 thieves were described as affectionless psychopaths. THIS SHOWS LINK BETWEEN MATERNAL DEPRIVATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF ATTECTIONLESS PSYCHOPATHY IN LATER LIFE
123
What are the strengths of Bowlby's 44 thieves study?
Barely any...
124
What are the weaknesses of Bowlby's 44 thieves study? (4)
Cannot establish a cause & effect as could be other hidden variables. Could be biased as based on Bowlby's own interpretation. Evidence may be poor as some studies were done in WW2 where children were obviously distressed, this could cause trauma in later life. Critical period could be more of a sensitive period as a study found twin boys who had been locked in a cupboard for 7 years were recovering fully when adopted by 2 loving parents
125
What does Bowlby argue early relationships will affect?
Your later relationships based on your internal working model
126
Why does Bowlby believe early relationships will affect your later relationships?
As infants primary attachment figures behavior promotes an internal working model which leads infants to behave a certain way to people in the future
127
A child who experiences a bad first attachment is more likely to what?
Struggle to form a relationship or may not behave appropriately in one
128
What did Myron-Wilson and Smith 1998 believe about attachment?
It is associated with the quality of peer relationships in childhood
129
What did Myron-Wilson and Smith investigate?
The relationship between bullying behavior and attachment types on 196 children aged 7-11 from London
130
What did Myron-Wilson and Smith find?
If you were securely attached you were unlikely to be involved in bullying, insecure avoidant were most likely to be victims and insecure resistant were most likely to be the bullies
131
What did Zimmerman find in 2002 about the quality of attachment and adolescence attachment to parents?
There was very little relationship which contradicts Bowlby's idea of an internal working model meaning it is less reliable
132
Bailey et al's study supported Bowlby's concept of an IWN, what was their study?
Strange situation study and found most babies had the same attachment type to their mothers
133
What was the key study supporting Bowlby's idea of an IWM?
Hazen and Shaver 1987's Love Quiz
134
What was the love quiz?
Nearly 100 questions advertised in a newspaper about attachment type, 620 replies
135
What did Hazen and Shaver's love quiz find?
56% classified as secure attached, 25% as insecure avoidant and 19% as insecure resistant - CORRELATION BETWEEN ATTACHMENT STYLE AND THEIR MEMORIES OF PARENTING STYLES
136
What are the criticisms of Hazen and Shavers love quiz? (3)
It cannot establish a cause and effect as questionnaire
Biased sample as volunteer sample which means difference in personality when applying, demand characteristics as people may answer being socially desirable which is RETROSPECTIVE DATA
137
What does studying effects of institutionalization lead to?
Discovery and understanding of the maternal deprivation hypothesis
138
What was going on in Romania 1990's that affected attachment in children to their mothers?
Ban of contraception and abortion so higher rise in birth rates and children put into orphanages
139
What was the aim of Rutter's study in 2011?
Romanian orphans - longitudinal study. to investigate the extent which children would recover when extreme deprivation in early life was followed by a caring childhood
140
What was Rutter's study in 2011?
Random sample of 165 Romanian orphans adopted by UK families before 3 and a half. compared to a control group of 52 children adopted in the UK who had not been instututionalised. Assessed at age 4,6,11,15
141
What did Rutter's study in 2011 find?
when arrived in UK 1/2 adoptees showed signs of mental retardation, at 4 years romanian orphans were doing better. how well they were doing was related to the time of their adoption - if adopted before 6 months IQ of 102, 6 months-2 years IQ of 86 and after 2 years IQ of 72. Those adopted after 6 months showed signs of disinhabited attachment (no stranger anxiety, clingy, attentionseeking)
142
What does Rutter's study show us about the effects of institutionalisation?
Disinhabited attachment was a sign of being instituationalised, equally affedctionate to strangers due to having many caregivers during senstive period
Intellectual development could be recovered if adoption took place before 6 months
SUPPORT CONCEPT OF SENSITIVE PERIOD RATHER THAN A CRITICAL PERIOD
143
What is Zeenahs study do in 2005?
Control group of 50 children never living in an institution, 95 children who spent majority of time in an institution aged 12-31 months. In capital of Romania. Assessed using strange situation, carers were asked about unusual social behavior, 74% of control group were securely attached as a pose to 19% of institutionalised group
144
What are the strengths of the 2 romanian orphan studies on attachment? (3)
Good application as now we know children should be adopted before 6 months, now children will often have a key worker to avoid no stranger anxiety
Furthered our understanding of intellectual and emotional difficulties being affected by instituationalisation
Provides insight into critical and sensitive period
145
What are the weaknesses of the 2 romanian orphan studies on attachment? (2)
Lack generalisability as extreme cases
| It is difficult to be sure that these long term effects will continue into adulthood
146
What does Rutter critisise about Bowlby's theory?
The critical period of 2.5 years is more of a sensitve one
