Attachment and Childcare Flashcards
What is attachment theory?
Where the infant uses the caregiver as a secure base for explorations and separations. this relationship develops an internal working model which provides basis for future relationships.
What is attachment?
An enduring emotional tie to an infants primary caregiver, characterised by the tendency to seek and maintain closeness.
What are Bowlby’s stages of attachment?
Stage 1: no discrimination between non-caregivers. Makes noises to signal caregiver. 0-5m.
Stage 2: discriminates between people. more likely to be comforted by people they know. 5-7m.
Stage 3: fear of strangers. separation anxiety - crying/protesting when caregiver leaves. 7-9m.
Stage 4: child can wait for caregiver to return and understands they will come back. goal correct partnership. 2-3yrs.
Stage 5: lessening of attachment. abstract notion of trust, internal working model fully developed. school age.
Who is Mary Ainsworth?
Collaborated with Bowlby. Coined term maternal sensitivity. Conducted strange situation.
What is maternal sensitivity?
How quickly a mother understands and responds to the needs of her child.
What is anxious avoidant attachment characterised by?
Child may not be distressed at mothers departure and may avoid or turn away on her return.
What is anxious resistant/ambivalent characterised by?
Child highly distressed at mothers departure. upon her return they both seek and resist proximity to mother.
What is secure attachment characterised by?
Child distressed by mothers departure and quickly soothed by her return.
What is disorganised attachment characterised by?
Does not fit into any of the other patterns. possibly dazed when mother leaves and returns.
What are the core hypotheses of attachment theory?
Sensitivity and competence.
What is the sensitivity hypothesis?
The more sensitive the caregiver, the higher the likelihood that the baby will be securely attached.
What is the competence hypothesis?
Securely attached individuals are more competent.
What research does not support the sensitivity hypothesis?
Seifer et. al (1996) found that there was no relation between sensitivity and secure attachments. they found that temperament of infant related to maternal sensitivity. Correlation between secure and sensitivity: .22.
What research does support the sensitivity hypothesis?
In Zreik et al (2017) they found in Arab-Israeli children there was a relationship between sensitivity and secure attachment - but only in Christian mothers in Muslim mothers no effect between the two seen. Babies respond negatively when their mother not not respond to them. Mothers and fathers of avoidant children showed less sensitivity.
What research supports the competence hypothesis?
Children who had an avoidant relationship with their mother were rated by peers as more aggressive. those who had a secure relationship with their father were rated as less aggressive. socially competent children related to security with mother .33 and father .25. -> these correlations are relatively small so behaviour must be multi-determined.
