Attachment Flashcards
4 behaviours that indicate attachment?
- proximity seeking (especially when stressed)
- separation when distressed
- pleasure when reunited
- general orientation towards specific individual
What did Schaffer and Emerson (1964) do?
Longitudinal study in a naturalistic environment Observations and diary records Measured attachment via: - separation anxiety - stranger anxiety
At how old did Schaffer and Emerson find that babies formed their first attachment by? And stranger anxiety?
First attachment by 8 months. Stranger anxiety a month afterwards.
Name Stage 1 of the Schaffer and Emerson study.
The asocial stage
What is the age of the first stage in the Schaffer and Emerson study?
0 - 6 weeks
Outline the Asocial, Stage 1 in the Schaffer and Emerson study.
- babies respond in a similar way to animate or inanimate objects
- towards the end, babies respond with a smiling face
What is the name of Stage 2 in the Schaffer and Emerson study?
Indiscriminate.
In the Schaffer and Emerson study, what is the age range of the 2nd study?
2 - 6 months
Outline the Stage 2 Indiscriminate stage in the Schaffer and Emerson study.
- babies prefer human company to inanimate objects
- they can distinguish between familiar and non-familiar people
- easily comforted by anyone. no stranger anxiety
- enjoyment of being with people
What is the name of the 3rd stage of the Schaffer and Emerson study?
Specific
What is the age of the 3rd Schaffer and Emerson stage?
7/8 months
Outline stage 3 of the Schaffer and Emerson study.
Baby forms separation anxiety
Also stranger anxiety develops
Define reciprocity.
A description of how 2 people interact.
Mother-infant interaction is reciprocal in that both the infant and mother respond to each other’s signals and each elicits a response from the other - like a conversation.
Define interactional synchrony.
Mother and infant reflect both the actions and emotions of the other and do this in a co-ordinated (synchronised) way.
Like a mirror.
Who are ethologists?
Biologists who study animal behaviour in their natural environment
What were the 2 experimental conditions of Lorenz’ study?
Condition 1: HE was the first moving object seen by the goose chicks after they hatched
Condition 2: the mother goose was the first moving object seen by the chicks after they hatched
Define attachment.
The formation of a strong, reciprocal bond between a child and its primary caregiver. It serves a function of protecting an infant.
What does the evolutionary theory say about attachment?
The tendency to form attachments is innate. This tendency is present in both mothers and infants.
What does the learning their say about attachment?
Infants have no innate tendency to form attachment. They learn attachments because of food.
Outline the method of the Strange Situation.
- Mother and child in a playroom. Child exploring.
- Stranger enters. Talks to mother and baby.
- Mother leaves.
- Stranger interacts with the child.
- Mother returns and stranger leaves.
- Mother leaves the room so baby is alone.
- Stranger returns and is alone with the baby.
- Mother returns and stranger leaves.
What is the name of type A?
Insecure avoidant.
What percent of children are type A?
20%
Outline insecure avoidant.
- baby ignores mother due to indifference
- no sign of distress when the mother is absent, and actively ignores her on return
- distress is caused by being alone, and the infant can be comforted by the stranger as easily as the mother
- mother and stranger treated the same
What is the name of type B?
Secure attachment
What percentage of children are Type B?
70%
Outline type B
- the baby plays happily while the mother is present - whether the stranger is there or not.
- mother largely ignored as she can be trusted to be there when needed
- distressed when the mother leaves, and seems immediate contact with her on return, calming down quickly
- distress caused by the mother’s absence, not by being alone
- stranger and mother treated very differently
What is the name of type C?
Insecure resistant
What percent of children are type C?
10%
Outline type C
- baby is fussy and wary when the mother is present
What kind of observation was the Strange Situation?
A structured (controlled)
How old were the children in the Strange Situation?
12 to 18 months
The children were measured in terms of… (4)
- exploration
- separation distress
- stranger anxiety
- reunion behaviour
In the Strange Situation, a sensitive primary caregiver leads to…
A securely attached child
In the Strange Situation, insecure attachment leads to…
Problems with relationships in later life
What is Type D attachment in the Strange Situation?
Children who show inconsistent behaviour, confusion and indecision. They may display characteristics of type A, B, C at different stages of the Strange Situation.
When is type D attachment more common?
In abused or neglected children, and may be due to the child seeing the caregiver as frightening
If a child has a SECURE attachment type, what will their adult relationship be like?
Develops mature, trusting relationships that endure over time.
If a child has an AVOIDANT attachment type, what will their adult relationship be like?
Difficulty in trusting others and often unable to develop a trusting, intimate relationships.
If a child has a RESISTANT attachment type, what will their adult relationships be like?
Wishes to be close to their partner but fears rejection of affection.
If a child has a DISORGANISED attachment type, what will their adult relationships be like?
Displays behaviour that is abusive, insensitive, chaotic and liable to frightened outburst, yet still craves security.
Why are first relationships crucial?
Because they provide a schema (cognitive framework - like a blueprint) for all future relationships. This is due to the influence of the internal working model.
Why do attachment type get passed down throughout generations of families?
Because people base their parenting styles on their internal working model.
Define institutionalisation
It refers to the effects on a child of growing up in an institutional environment such as an orphanage.
Outline the context behind the Romanian Orphanages.
- president Nicolae Ceausescu was a communist dictator in the 70s and 80s
- he banned contraception to increase the population
- made a law that every woman had to have five children
- many parents couldn’t afford this so handed them over to the state
- these children were placed in huge, poor quality institutions
Rutter et al procedure?
Longitudinal study of Romanian orphans adopted by British families.
Assessed at 4, 6, 11 & 15.
What are the 4 stages of attachment according to Schaffer?
- asocial
- indiscriminate
- specific
- multiple
What’s the role of operant conditioning in the Learning Theory as an explanation of attachment?
Because crying leads to a response from the caregiver.
As long as the caregiver provides the correct response, crying is reinforced because it produces a pleasurable consequence.
What is the role of negative reinforcement in the Learning Theory in attachment?
At the same time the baby is reinforced for crying, the caregiver reviewers negative reinforcement because the crying stops.
Explain how a baby learns that the mother produces a sense of pleasure.
The mother starts as the NS.
Over time she becomes associated with food so the NS becomes a CS.
Once conditioning has taken place, the sight of the caregiver produces a CR of pleasure.
