Attachment Flashcards
When is the ‘critical period’ as suggested by Bowlby?
When an infant is aged between 7/8 months and 2/3 years
What is the definition of an infant?
A child without speech
Define ‘attachment’.
An emotional tie or bond between two people shown in their behaviour.
What is reciprocity?
When you respond to an action with another similar action. This interaction goes back and forth (taking turns).
What is interactional synchrony?
When two people interact and mirror one another. This can include emotions as well as behaviours.
Why is sensitivity key in attachment?
If one person is sensitive to an others needs, it shows they care.
What is ‘monotropy’ as explained by Bowlby?
The single special relationship or attachment between the caregiver (usually the mother) and their infant.
What are examples of social releasers?
Crying, smiling and facial features
Why are social releasers used?
To increase an infants chances of receiving care.
Name 2 researchers of reciprocity
Tronick et al and Jaffe et al
What did Tronick et al do to study reciprocity?
Asked mothers to keep a neutral expression on their face whilst interacting with their babies, to study their response.
What did Tronick et al find as a result of their study of reciprocity?
Babies expect their mothers to reciprocate, and can become puzzled and sometimes distressed when they don’t.
What conclusion did Tronick et al draw from their study of reciprocity?
Reciprocity appears to be an innate characteristic.
What did Jaffe et al find as a result of their study of reciprocity?
Babies move in a rhythm when interacting with adults, as if they were taking turns.
Name 1 researcher of interactional synchrony
Meltzoff and Moore
What did Meltzoff and Moore do to study interactional synchrony?
Chose 4 different actions for an adult to perform in front of a baby to see if they would mirror these actions.
What did Meltzoff and Moore find as a result of their study in to interactional synchrony?
When the adult performed actions, the infant mirrored the adults behaviour.
What is ethology?
Animal research
Name two animal studies which Bowlby used to help base his theory of attachment upon
Lorenz (Goslings) and Harlow (Monkeys)
What did Lorenz set out to prove with his research?
That attachment is evolutionary and not learned
What did Lorenz’s research prove?
That imprinting in goslings is innate, and essential for their survival.
How did Harlow’s research back up Bowlby’s ‘continuity hypothesis’?
Due to their lack of attachment in infancy, the monkeys could not form attachments with other monkeys later in life.
How does Harlow’s research back up Bowlby’s ‘internal working model’ idea?
The monkey’s caregiver didn’t reciprocate, as it was inanimate, meaning the monkeys developed a faulty internal working model and couldn’t form attachments later in life.
Why could Harlow’s monkeys not form attachments with other monkeys in their later life?
They had insecure attachments during infancy so developed faulty internal working models.
When distressed, Harlow’s monkeys would run to a warm, soft figure rather than one containing food. What conclusions can be drawn from this?
The monkeys need a sensitive relationship in order to feel safe.
Schaffer and Emmerson’s research supported Bowlby’s theory of attachment. What did they find?
Primary attachments are not always formed with the person who spends the most time with a child
What did Schaffer and Emmerson conclude from their research in attachment?
It is the quality of a relationship, not the quantity that matters.
How did Schaffer and Emmerson’s research support Bowlbys idea of monotropy?
They discovered that fathers are less likely to be a child’s primary care giver- supporting Bowlby’s idea of the mother most likely being the child’s primary attachment figure.
How does Rutter et al’s research challenge Bowlby’s theory of attachment?
Suggests the critical period is just ‘sensitive’, and without sensitive care in the critical period Romanian Orphans were still able to catch up with regular children in terms of mental performance.
What are the 4 main points of Bowlby’s attachment theory?
Monotropy,
Critical Period,
Internal Working Model,
Continuity Hypothesis.
What did Hazan and Shaver do for their research in to attachment?
Placed a ‘love quiz’ in a small towns newspaper asking questions about attachment experiences in order to identify childhood attachment types, and questions on attitudes towards love in order to assess the internal working model. They received 620 responses.
What did Hazan and Shaver find as a result of their ‘love quiz’?
If you have a secure attachment when you’re younger you’re more likely to have a secure attachment when you’re older.
Why may Hazan and Shaver’s love quiz study not be very valid?
It used retrospective data, which may be distorted.
Only volunteers responded to the quiz, meaning the sample was not representative of the general population.
What research did Zimmerman et al carry out?
A longitudinal study assessing children over 16 years to study their development.
What did Zimmerman et al find?
Serious life events (such as the death of a child’s PCG) may upset what happened in the critical period.
Define deprivation (in terms of attachment).
The loss of an attachment.
i.e- an attachment has been formed but has been lost.
When may physical deprivation (attachment) occur?
If a caregiver is not physically present to provide physical or emotional care for an infant.
When may emotional deprivation (attachment) occur?
If an infants primary care giver is depressed. Although they may be physically present and provide an infant with physical care, their mental state means they are unable to provide sensitive emotional care, causing the infant to be emotionally deprived.
Does Rutter et al’s research support or challenge Bowlby?
Challenge
How does Rutter et al’s research challenge Bowlby’s theory of attachment? (2 examples)
Suggests children can still perform well mentally and socially, even if they receive no sensitive care during the critical period.
Does Koluchova’s research support or challenge Bowlby?
Supports and challenges
How does Koluchova’s research support Bowlby’s theory of attachment?
Children who had no sensitive care during the critical period struggled mentally and socially.
