Attachment - caregiver-infant interactions

Question 1

What is attachment?

Answer 1

“A deep and enduring emotional bond that connects one person to another across time and space” - John Bowlby
It is permanent

Question 2

Why is attachment so important for humans?

Answer 2

Human babies are altricial (born at a relatively early stage of development)
They need to form bonds with adults who will protect and nurture them

Question 3

What is the importance of caregiver-infant interactions?

Answer 3

They form the basis of attachment between an infant and caregiver

Question 4

What does reciprocity mean?

Answer 4

Each party responds to the other’s signals to sustain interaction - turn-taking or a non-verbal conversation
Behaviour from each party elicits a response from the other

Question 5

What happens if mother doesn’t respond?

Answer 5

Dr. Edward Tronick conducted ‘still face’ experiment where mother doesn’t respond so baby tries to engage her again and becomes very distressed

Question 6

What is interactional synchrony?

Answer 6

When 2 people interact with a simultaneous co-ordinated sequence of movements. They mirror the other in terms of facial expressions and body movements

Question 7

What was the Meltzoff and Moore procedure (1977)?

Answer 7

Controlled observations using babies (6-27 days old). Exposed to different stimuli (3 facial features, 1 manual gesture). Independent observer recorded responses using behavioural categories (checklist). Each observer stored recordings twice for inter-rater reliability

Question 8

What were the findings and conclusion of Meltzoff and Moore (1977)?

Answer 8

Association between babies’ behaviour and adult model so interactional synchrony does exist in babies as young as 6 days old, suggestion this behaviour is innate

Question 9

What did Isabella (1989) find about relationship between interactional synchrony and attachment?

Answer 9

Observed 30 mothers and infants to find high levels of interactional synchrony associated with better mother-baby attachment

Question 10

What does Brazelton state about the baby’s active involvement in reciprocity?

Answer 10

Described as a ‘dance’ as each partner responds to the other’s moves - both caregiver and baby can initiate interactions. Opposes traditional views that babies are passive