Attachment Flashcards
Attachment
A close two way emotional bond between two individuals. It takes a few moths to develop. It can be recognised if they are in close proximity, get distressed if they are separated (separation distress.) and make regular contact with them. (Secure base behaviour.)
Reciprocity
How two people interact. Eg. Mother and infant respond to each others signals and each elicits a response.
(Brazelton et al, like a dance.)
Interactional synchrony
Mother and infant reflect both actions and emotions of the other and do it in a synchronised way.
High levels of synchrony were associated with better quality attachment. (Isabella et al.)
Caregiver-infant interactions
Reciprocity and interactional synchrony
Attachment figures
Parent-infant attachment, the role of the father, fathers as primary carers.
Parent infant attachment
Schaffer and Emerson found that the majority of babies did become attached to their mother first. After 7 months, they then begin to form secondary attachments. Eg. Father.
75% at 18 months had all created secondary attachments.
The role of the father
Grossman- longitudinal study found that fathers have a different role in attachment, theirs is to do with play and stimulation and less nurture.
Fathers as primary care givers
Father adapts behaviour to be more nurturing. Eg. Smiling, imitating and holding them. Key to attachment is level of responsiveness, not gender.
Evaluation- caregiver infant interactions
Its hard to know what is happening when observing infants, don’t know if its deliberate/special.
Good validity, studies are controlled and recorded so can be watched back and later analysed.
Observations don’t tell us the purpose of synchrony and reciprocity.
Evaluation- attachment figures
Inconsistent findings on fathers, as psychologists are researching different questions.
If fathers have a distinct role why aren’t children without fathers different? Suggests fathers S.A aren’t important.
Fathers may not become P.A because of gender roles or lower levels of female nurturing hormones.
Key study: Schaffer and Emerson. Method
Method: 60 babies, 31 males and 29 females from Glasgow. Working class families. Mothers were visited every month for first year then at 18 months. Questionnaire about separation anxiety (leaving the room) and stranger anxiety (unfamiliar adults).
Key study: Schaffer and Emerson. Findings.
Between 25-32 weeks 50% showed separation anxiety. By 40 weeks 80% had a specific attachment and 30% had multiple attachments.
Stages of attachment
Asocial stage, Indiscriminate attachment, Specific attachment and Multiple attachments.
Stage 1: Asocial stage
First few weeks, baby recognises and forms bonds with its carers. Reactions towards objects and humans is similar. Some preferences for familiar adults.
Stage 2: Indiscriminate attachment
2-7 months. Preference for humans rather than objects. Recognise and prefer familiar adults. Usually accept cuddles and comfort from any adult. So don’t show stranger or separation anxiety.
Stage 3: Specific attachment
7+ months, start to display anxiety towards strangers and separation from one particular adult (usually mother). Formed first primary attachment.
Stage 4: Multiple attachment
Shortly after stage 3 they begin to form other attachments with other adults who they see regularly. In Schaffer and Emersons study one month later after primary attachments formed 29% had created multiple attachments.
Schaffer and Emerson evaluation
Good external validity- study done in natural environment (home) and reported later so babies behaviour less likely to be affected by presence of observers.
Longitudinal design- better than using different children (cross sectional) as then theres no confounding variables meaning higher validity.
Not generalisable- same district, social class, same city and 50+ years ago.
Stages of attachment evaluation
Problem studying asocial stage, hardly any observable behaviour as they are immobile, evidence cant be relied on.
Conflicting evidence on multiple attachments, some believe that babies form multiple attachments first from particular cultures where families work together in everything.
Bowlby pointed out that children can become distressed when a playmate leaves, this doesn’t signify attachment.
Lorenz’s research procedure
Observed imprinting, he randomly divided a clutch of goose eggs, half were hatched with the mother goose, then the others in an incubator where they saw Lorenz first.
Lorenz’s research findings
The incubator group followed Lorenz everywhere when the control group followed the mother. When the two were mixed up, they continued to follow Lorenz. (Imprinting.)
Imprinting
Where bird species which are mobile from birth attach and follow the first moving object they see. Lorenz identified a critical period where imprinting needs to take place. If it doesn’t occur during the critical period, chicks didn’t attach to a mother figure.