Attachment

Question 1

What is the definition of an infant?

Answer 1

a child below the age of 2, derivative from the latin word “infans”, meaning “unable to speak”.

Question 2

How do caregiver-infant interactions affect social development?

Answer 2

If an individual lacks caregiver-infant interactions, this can lead to poor social skills, poor academia and intellect and stunted brain development.

Question 3

What is the Caregiver-Infant interaction of reciprocity?

Answer 3

A reciprocal interaction between caregiver ad baby, in which each party’s behavior elicits a response from the other (i.e. a baby pointing and a caregiver laughing)

Question 4

How can interactional reciprocity reflect sociability in later life?

Answer 4

It can often be the gateway to learning how to engage in conversation (especially the meaningless ones– e.g. “How are you?”- “I’m fine how are you”). These interactions are reciprocal as both parties engage and both parties warrant a response from the other.

Question 5

What is the Caregiver-Infant interaction of Synchrony?

Answer 5

When a caregiver and infant reflect the actions of the other in unity (e.g. mirroring each others facial and body movements).

Question 6

How does Interactional Synchrony differ from interactional reciprocity?

Answer 6

Synchrony is different to reciprocity as, in synchrony, the actions have to be the same (i.e . both the caregiver and infant laughing/clapping), whereas the behaviors in reciprocity do not have to be the same, but do have to elicit more response.

Question 7

how is synchrony important in creating an emotionally responsive primary attachment?

Answer 7

Meltzoff proposed that infants associate their actions/expressions with their own mental states, so the infant would project their mental state (and therefore mood/emotion) onto the caregiver performing the same acts. This would help the infant begin to understand what the caregiver is thinking/feeling, resulting in the pair being more accustomed to each others needs and therefore forming a more secure attachment (this could also lead to development of social skills due to receptiveness/sensitivity).

Question 8

What is one study that investigated Interactional Synchrony?

Answer 8

Meltzoff and Moore

Question 9

What was the aim of M_____f and M___e’s study?

Answer 9

Meltzoff and Moore- To investigate interactional synchrony by testin how infants copy an adult’s facial expressions.

Question 10

What was the independent variable in M_____f and M___e’s study?

Answer 10

Meltzoff and Moore The expression the adult used when interacting with the baby ( i.e. if the adult opened their mouth, if they stuck out their tongue etc.)

Question 11

What was the dependent variable of M_____f and M___e’s study?

Answer 11

Meltzoff and Moore Whether or not the baby copied the expression (to ensure accurate results, the babies’ responses were taped and the adult participant was kept oblivious of their exact aim)

Question 12

What was the aim of S______r and E_____n’s study?

Answer 12

Schaffer and Emerson- To investigate attachment formation, particularly the age when attachment occurs, the emotional intensity of the attachment and the target of the attachment.

Question 13

Briefly outline the method of S______r and E_____n’s study

Answer 13

Schaffer and Emerson- during the 1960s, Schaffer tested on 60 babies and their mothers from Glasgow- all from skilled working class families. They tested:
Separation Anxiety by asking parents what protest behaviors their child showed when they left and
Stranger Anxiety observing how a baby responds to unfamiliar adults trying to cuddle/interact with the infants

Question 14

What were the findings of S______r and E_____n’s study?

Answer 14

Schaffer and Emerson- between 25 and 32 weeks of age, average 50% of babies showed separation anxiety from their primary caregivers, meaning they made a specific attachment.
By 40 weeks, 80% of the infants had specific attachments, while 30% of them had multiple attachments.

Question 15

What are the 4 stages of Attachment (according to Schaffer and Emerson)?

Answer 15

Indiscriminate Attachment, Beginnings of Attachment, Discriminate Attachments and Multiple Attachments.

Question 16

How would an infant seem during Indiscriminate Attachment?

Answer 16

The child would show no preference for any objects/people, they would not have any preferred people or objects, but may show response to social stimuli (i.e. faces or teddies), though this does not indicate attachment, just stimulation.

Question 17

How would an infant seem during Beginnings of Attachment?

Answer 17

The infant would be able to distinguish familiar people from strangers, but there would be no stranger anxiety yet, and there may still be no primary attachment.

Question 18

How would an infant seem during Discriminate Attachment?

Answer 18

At this stage, separation anxiety and preference for the primary caregiver would have become present, and the infant would be reliant on the emotional attention and support of their primary caregiver (if neglected, this could lead to stunted brain development and pathological issues in later life).

Question 19

How would an infant seem during Multiple Attachments?

Answer 19

At this stage, discriminate attachments would be formed with secondary figures (often showcasing separation anxiety from these attachment figures).

Question 20

Why might the four stages of attachment not be universally applicable? 
Clues-
Culture
Autism 
Downs Syndrome

Answer 20

US and UK cultures tend to focus more on their close family’s needs, whereas other cultures use shared childcare, and this could discourage primary attachment. Sagi et al, who compared attachments in infants raised communally and in families, found small families formed more close attachments). Children with autism and down syndrome may also struggle with attachment, as children with autism may form attachments much later on, or only form a primary attachment, and then stop. People with downs may skip the stage of indiscriminate attachment and move to multiple attachment, meaning they form attachments easily, and want to become close with strangers (seemingly friendly)(This is individual/dispositional as downs is a chromosomal disorder).

Question 21

How could the self-report methodology in Schaffer and Emerson’s study be considered unreliable?

Answer 21

The use of open questions to the mothers, questioning their motherhood, could have caused demand characteristics such as the desirability effect. Some mothers were also probably more perceptive to their child than others. Also, as of the time of the study, many of these mothers would have been stay-at-home mothers, which could have made their attitudes to childcare vary from contemporary ones.

Question 22

What is imprinting?

Answer 22

An infant’s readiness to make a bond with the mother which takes place during a specific time period, usually the first few hours after birth. If it doesn’t happen in this period, it isn’t likely to happen at all.

Question 23

What is Sexual Imprinting?

Answer 23

the idea that imprinting will affect adult mate preferences, meaning that animals will mate with the same sort of object as they imprinted on.

Question 24

Name one study that investigated imprinting

Answer 24

Lorenz (1959)

Question 25

Briefly outline the method of L____z's (1959) study

Answer 25

Lorenz collected gosling eggs and tested them while they hatched. He divided them into two groups, one hatched naturally, so first saw the mother, and the other hatched in an incubator, so the first thing they saw was Lorenz. He marked each gosling and mixed the groups, so they all spent time with both him and the mother in a group, after first contact. The goslings who first saw Lorenz imprinted on him and followed him round.

Question 26

What were the findings of L____z's (1959) study?

Answer 26

Lorenz- He discovered the Critical period- a period of time in which the animal must be exposed to a moving object. If the animal does not imprint during this critical period, it will not imprint at all (this is usually within the first two days).

Question 27

Briefly outline the method of Harlow (1959)

Answer 27

Harlow tested on 8 infant monkeys. He created two wire monkey “mother” sculptures, one with a wire head, one with a cloth head, each holding a bottle. He measured how much time the infants spent with each mother, and if the monkeys sought comfort from either when exposed to a threat (a mechanical teddy bear)

Question 28

How does Bowlby's monotropic theory contrast that of the Learning Theory of Attachment?

Answer 28

It suggests attachment is innate rather than learned.

Question 29

How did Bowlby think attachment was an evolutionary adaptation?

Answer 29

Bowlby believed attachment was due to survival instinct, as infants need protection and adults must pass down genes. He believed humans developed this due to our extended childhood (18+ years reliance).

Question 30

What are social releasers?

Answer 30

Assets that babies are born with that trigger the Innate Adult Attachment System. These can be: Physical: big eyes, small chin, small, chubby- or Behavioral: e.g. crying, cooing, gripping fingers etc.

Question 31

What is Innate Adult Attachment System?

Answer 31

attachment was reciprocal, so both baby and mother had instincts to attach. Social releasers trigger this system, and it causes us to attach to the infant based on these.

Question 32

What does monotropy mean?

Answer 32

The theory that an infant’s Primary attachment Figure influenced social development more than others, so was the most important attachment. Bowlby believed our instincts were to attach to mothers.

Question 33

What is the Inner Working Model?

Answer 33

The idea that our primary attachment created an inner working model (like a schema) that we use as a template for future relationships and expectations of love.

Question 34

What is The Continuity Hypothesis?

Answer 34

It theorised that people securely attached in infancy had more secure adult relationships. It was later proven by Bowlby's theory of Maternal Deprivation.

Question 35

What were the specifics of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 35

It was a laboratory study, where a controlled situation was contrived in order to test the security of attachment between 100 middle class mothers and their babies.

Question 36

How many situations were created in Ainsworth's study?

Answer 36

8 situations, some involving confederates

Question 37

What was the first contrived situation (stage 1) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 37

The mother and infant go into a new room, the mother sits down and the baby is left to explore ( tests secure base attachment and desire for proximity)

Question 38

What was the second contrived situation (stage 2) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 38

A confederate "stranger" enters the room and interacts with mother. This would therefore distract the mother from the baby and move focus to the stranger, which tests stranger anxiety.

Question 39

What was the third contrived situation (stage 3) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 39

The confederate stranger tries to play with the baby. This tests separation anxiety.

Question 40

What was the fourth contrived situation (stage 4) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 40

The mother leaves the room and the stranger attempts to comfort the baby ( testing separation and stranger anxiety)

Question 41

What was the fifth contrived situation (stage 5) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 41

The mother returns and tries to mollify baby (testing secure base attachment).

Question 42

What was the sixth contrived situation (stage 6) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 42

The mother leaves the room and leaves the infant alone. This tests seeking proximity, secure base attachment and separation anxiety.

Question 43

What was the seventh contrived situation (stage 7) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 43

When mother is absent, the stranger returns and attempts to comfort the baby ( tests stranger anxiety).

Question 44

What was the seventh contrived situation (stage 8) of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 44

Mother returns to mollify baby. Tests secure base attachment.

Question 45

What were the two attachment types found by Ainsworth's study?

Answer 45

Insecure avoidant attachment, Insecure Resistant attachment and Secure attachment .

Question 46

What is Insecure avoidant attachment? | How many participants in Ainsworth's study?

Answer 46

The child shows little to no anxiety, doesn’t seek proximity and doesn’t require mollification from mother. Type in 22% of infants in the study.

Question 47

What is secure attachment? | How many participants in Ainsworth's study?

Answer 47

The child explores happily, but still seeks proximity to mother. The child will still show mild anxiety and require mother’s mollification. This is the attachment type seen in 66% of the participants.

Question 48

What is insecure resistant attachment? | How many participants in Ainsworth's study?

Answer 48

The child shows high anxiety (separation and stranger) but rejects the mother’s mollification.

Question 49

Briefly outline Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation

Answer 49

Bowlby theorised that infants deprived of maternal care in a critical period would have long term consequences, such as emotional underdevelopment and mental illness.

Question 50

How do critical periods apply to Bowlby's theory of maternal deprivation?

Answer 50

0-2.5 years. If the child was continually/repeatedly separated from the mother or deprived from emotional attachment/care to this mother, the child might have developmental issues. This risk continued to the age of 5. However, after this time, temporary separation from the mother will not cause lasting damage.

Question 51

What was the procedure taken in Bowlby's 44 Juvenile Thieves Study?

Answer 51

Bowlby took a sample of 88 children from the orphanage he worked at (for orphans and kids with incarcerated parents), all showing emotional maladjustment. 44 of these kids had been caught stealing. He thought 32 of these “thieves” were affectionless psychopaths. Bowlby then delved into the children’s records and investigated their upbringing.

Question 52

How did the findings from Bowlby's 44 Juvenile Thieves Study support his theory of maternal deprivation?

Answer 52

Bowlby found 86% of the thieving children with affectionless psychopathy experienced frequent separations from their mother during infancy. The control participants (the 44 non thieving participants) had almost no accounts of early maternal deprivation, whereas 39% of the thieves did

Question 53

What category of study was Rutter et. Al?

Answer 53

A longitudinal study

Question 54

What concept of attachment did Rutter's study's findings inspire?

Answer 54

Institutionalism

Question 55

What is institutionalism?

Answer 55

Institutionalism refers to the effect of living in an institutional setting (i.e. outside the family or family home). This is usually due to the child having a lack of primary care and can cause emotional, social and pathological complications.

Question 56

What was the type of study used in Rutter et al?

Answer 56

It was a natural experiment, as the independent variable (the neglect of the orphans and the age of adoption for each orphan) was predetermined, so didn't need to be changed.

Question 57

What tragic event inspired Rutter et al 2010?

Answer 57

After Romanian leader Ceausescu tried to improve the economy by increasing the population, he started encouraging more women to give birth by offering more, benefits, lower taxes and public recognition whilst also banning abortion. However, many romanian families could not afford these children. Later, orphanages were discovered with terrible conditions: no washing conditions, basic furniture, cramped living space, inadequate food and most crucially- with no care for the children, just a living space.

Question 58

What was the sample size in Rutter et al's study?

Answer 58

165 of the romanian orphans were observed

Question 59

What were the different conditions of the sample tested in Rutter et Al (2010)?

Answer 59

111 of the orphans were adopted before the age of 2 | 54 of the orphans were adopted before the age of 4

Question 60

How were the participants tested in Rutter et Al (2010)?

Answer 60

They were assessed at different ages in life: 4,6,11, and 15

Question 61

How did Rutter ensure validity in the construction of his study?

Answer 61

He used a control group of 52 British-born orphans, adopted before the age of 6 months and compared the developmental levels of the romanian orphans to the development of this control group.

Question 62

How did the Romanian orphans in Rutter et Al's study appear to have adapted when first tested?

Answer 62

They initially lagged behind the control group in terms of size, growth, strength and mental capacity (many showed retardation).

Question 63

How did age of adoption affect the development of the orphans in Rutter et al?

Answer 63

Those who were adopted at a younger age (6 months and younger) tended to recover from the symptoms of institutionalisation better. For example, those adopted younger than six months tended to have much higher IQs than the other orphans, sometimes even displaying above average IQs.

Question 64

How did age of adoption affect the attachment type of the orphans in Rutter et al?

Answer 64

Children adopted after the age of six months often showed disinhibited attachment. Those adopted when six months old or younger rarely showed this.

Question 65

How can institutionalisation affect physicality?

Answer 65

A child who suffers adverse effects from institutionalisation can display signs of physical underdevelopment or restricted growth. Rutter called this Developmental dwarfism.

Question 66

How can institutionalisation affect behavior (in terms of dispositional abnormality)?

Answer 66

Institutionalised children can develop quasi-autism (displaying symptoms of autism) repeating rituals or twitches obsessively, or example twitching, tapping tables, spinning in circles.

Question 67

How can institutionalisation affect adult attachment/parenthood?

Answer 67

Institutionalisation can cause poor parenting in later life- often being more likely to be neglectful or abusive.

Question 68

How does institutionalisation relate to Bowlby's theory of the inner working model?

Answer 68

Institutionalisation can cause a lack of internal working model, often with children raised in institutionalised settings having difficulty interacting with peers and forming close relationships.

Question 69

How can institutionalisation affect intellect?

Answer 69

Severe institutionalisation or lack of are in infancy can cause intellectual underfunctioning (low IQ), often being in the bottom 30% of IQ in the population, sometimes eve in the bottom 10-15%. Some institutionalised children need extra help with academic schooling because of this.

Question 70

What was the general conclusions from Rutter et Al.?

Answer 70

If children deprived of attachment when young from healthy and supportive attachments in later life, they can recover from the negative effects of this deprivation. He suggested that deprivation did not cause irreversible damage, but rather slower development.

Question 71

What was H___n and S____r meant to test?

Answer 71

Hazan and Shaver-- It tested the presence of the inner working model and how early attachments affect later relationships.

Question 72

What was the methodology of H___n and S____r ?

Answer 72

Hazan and Shaver---- A “love quiz” was placed in an American,local small town newspaper. It asked questions about current attachment experiences and attachment history, as well as questions about attitudes towards love.

Question 73

What were the findings of H___n and S____r ?

Answer 73

Hazan and Shaver--- The test showed a positive correlation between security of attachment and positive/negative experience of love (i.e. securely attached adults describe their relationships and love as happy and trusting), therefore securely attached individuals would have a more positive inner working model

Question 74

How can inner working models affect behavior?

Answer 74

A positive inner working model can result in better Childhood friendships in individuals and a secure base attachment can result in being more socially competent in childhood. An insecure attachment type can relate to poor or neglectful parenting in adulthood. A secure attachment type in infancy can also result in longer lasting romantic relationships in adulthood.

Question 75

What was V__ L________n testing?

Answer 75

Van Ljzendoorn wanted to see how different cultures affected attachment type. The two types of culture that he focused on were: Individualist Cultures- focus more on the individual, and personal development/success (often capitalist countries show this, such as the U.S. or U.S.A Collectivist Cultures- focuses on the security and support of a group, emphasizing ideals like group co-operation (often communist and eastern countries).

Question 76

What was the methodology of V__ L________n?

Answer 76

Van Ljzendorn-- Meta-analysis using secondary data from 32 Ainsworth's strange situation replicas. 18 of the studies were in the U.S and two thirds were in western/individualist countries.

Question 77

What were the findings of V__ L________n?

Answer 77

Van Ljzendorn-- Secure attachment was the mode attachment type.. Germany and Holland had the highest levels of Insecure-avoidant attachment. Japan had the lowest levels of insecure-avoidant attachment. Eastern countries had the highest insecure-resistant attachment (Israel, China, Japan)

Question 78

What is one point that criticises learning theory of attachment?

Answer 78

Infant’s form secondary attachments early on, and these attachments would not be based on the attachment figure providing food, as the primary attachment would be more often associated with feeding.

Question 79

What is the temperament hypothesis? How does this relate to Bowlby's monotropic theory?

Answer 79

Temperament hypothesis suggests that children who were easy to care for were more likely to attach than children who were difficult to care for. This was supported by Belsky and Rovine, who found children with conditions that caused difficult/unpredictable behavior, insecure attachment were more likely. suggests attachment is not just due to innate responses, but is affected by the child’s dispositional factors.

Question 80

What is one beneficial application of Bowlby's theories (both monotropic and maternal deprivation?)

Answer 80

Due to Bowlby’s findings, care of children has been modified, so patients have a specific carer (known as a keyworker) who focuses on one child, allowing for intensive care and attachment,preventing deprivation.

Question 81

What is one positive of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 81

Scientific method - very high inter-rater reliability The study was replicated often over time, with the strange situation being easy to reconstruct and adapt to test different IVs

Question 82

What is one limitation of Ainsworth's strange situation study?

Answer 82

It can be considered ethnocentric due to all the mothers being middle class. It also shows gynocentrism.

Question 83

How was Ainsworth's study later developed?

Answer 83

Later, after the study, Ainsworth found disorganized attachment. This could cause ambivalent or confused behavior towards the parent. disinhibited attachment was also recognised, even later, often seeing the child being overly needy and showing high anxiety, or attaching alacritously with unfamiliar adults.

Question 84

What is one positive of Van Ljzendoorn's study?

Answer 84

Meta-analysis methodology The comparison of results from multiple studies increases the validity of any assumptions/findings and can eliminate the chance of anomaly.

Question 85

What is one negative of Van Ljzendoorn's study?

Answer 85

It was biased towards individualist cultures. 18 of the studies were in the US, an individualist culture, and two thirds of the countries tested were western and individualist. This could have been why secure attachment was the mode, and this might have not been the case if more Eastern/collectivist countries were tested.

Question 86

What is one criticism of Maternal Deprivation relating to disposition?

Answer 86

Psychopathy can be caused by a lack of development in the frontal lobe/ lack of connection between this and the amygdala. It can also be caused by genes (i.e. MAOA or COMT). Therefore, it could be caused by dispositional factors rather than deprivation.

Question 87

What were two issues with the methodology of Hazan and Shaver?

Answer 87

It was correlational research. It could be that attachment types and security of later relationships/positive inner working model are not cause and effect correlational factors. Recollections in adults of infancy are likely to be flawed, due to retrieval distorting the memory, or associating other factors later on. The self report questionnaire also makes the study susceptible to extraneous variables such as leading questions causing the admirability effect.

Question 88

What were two criticisms of Meltzoff and Moore?

Answer 88

Failure to replicate Meltzoff and Moore, for example, a study by Koepke failed to replicate its findings, though M&M argued that this was because the study was less controlled. This could suggest poor construct validity. poor ecological validity because of testing on infants. This could be because of twitching and frequent mouth moving, it was difficult to tell if the infant was just moving its mouth or responding to the adult.

Question 89

How could Schaffer and Emerson be argued to have cultural bias?

Answer 89

The sample was all working-class, all mothers and all from Glasgow in the 1960s.

Question 90

What study that relates to Schaffer and Emerson and culture suggests a correlation between family size and attachment ?

Answer 90

Schaffer disregards how attachment can vary due to different cultures and psychological abilities. E.g. US and UK cultures tend to focus more on their close family’s needs, whereas other cultures use shared childcare, and this could discourage primary attachment. This is supported by Sagi et al, who compared attachments in infants raised communally and in families (small families formed more close attachments)

Question 91

What study uses rubber gloves and chicken to support imprinting?

Answer 91

Guiton (1966), which tested if leghorn chicks would imprint on rubber gloves-they did- supported the idea of imprinting, also supported the idea of sexual imprinting.

Question 92

How can we criticise Harlow, relating to ethics?

Answer 92

The study created lasting emotional harm, many of the monkeys later struggled to form relationships with their peers, struggled with mating, struggled with raising offspring and showed increased aggression

Question 93

What are some real world applications that relate to Bowlby's monotropic theory?

Answer 93

Due to Bowlby’s findings, care of children has been modified, so patients have a specific carer (known as a keyworker) who focuses on one child, allowing for intensive care and attachment,preventing deprivation.

Question 94

What is one evaluation of Ainsworth's study relating to reliability? (and applications)

Answer 94

Scientific method - very high inter-rater reliability The study was replicated often over time, with the strange situation being easy to reconstruct and adapt to test different IVs. It also helped give insight to caregivers (via the CoSP) to help detect signals of stress/anxiety in infants.

Question 95

What is is one criticism of Ainsworth's Strange Situation study relating to cultural bias?

Answer 95

It could be culturally biased as it only used american middle class mums

Question 96

What is one evaluation of Ainsworth relating to adaptability?

Answer 96

Ainsworth needed to add a 4th type to explain all attachments. Later, after the study, Ainsworth found disorganized attachment. This could cause ambivalent or confused behavior towards the parent. disinhibited attachment was also recognised, even later, often seeing the child being overly needy and showing high anxiety, or attaching alacritously with unfamiliar adults. Adaptability is a key tenet of science and shows temporal validity

Question 97

WHat was one evaluation of Van Ljzendoorn related to data?

Answer 97

It was a meta-analysis methodology. The comparison of results from multiple studies increases the validity of any assumptions/findings and can eliminate the chance of anomaly.

Question 98

WHat was one criticism of Van Ljzendoorn related to culture?

Answer 98

The study was biased towards individualist cultures. 18 of the studies were in the US, an individualist culture, and two thirds of the countries tested were western and individualist. This could have been why secure attachment was the mode, and this might have not been the case if more Eastern/collectivist countries were tested.

Question 99

WHat was one criticism of Van Ljzendoorn related to nations?

Answer 99

May actually be nation, not culture, that determines attachment type. For example, Germany and Holland are individualist in culture, but had the highest levels of insecure avoidant attachment. This could be due to the nation’s general attitude, encouraging children to deal with and raise themselves.

Question 100

Which country showed the highest levels of anxious-avoidant children in Van Ljzendoorn's study?

Answer 100

Germany

Question 101

Which country in Van Ljzendoorn had the lowest levels of insecure avoidant attachment?

Answer 101

Japan

Question 102

In Van Lizendoorn's study, did attachment type vary more within cultures or between cultures?

Answer 102

WIthin cultures